The Aletheia Update

Before

2009-07-04T12:43:00.001-06:00

Moving Locations

2008-12-02T13:33:00.002-07:00

For a variety of reasons I am moving this blog to a new site: keepingupwiththekids.wordpress.com. Almost all of the old content has been imported there. Change your bookmarks! Come check out the new look! This one should carry us through the next kid or two, at least.

Exciting About the Food

2008-11-28T06:31:00.001-07:00

27 Months, 17 Days

Ready to Go

2008-11-28T06:30:00.001-07:00

27 Months 17 Days

Incoming

2008-11-25T07:10:00.001-07:00

I had a week long sabbatical and then everyone in our house got sick at once. It's been crazy. But blogging has been merely delayed, not forgotten. Right back at it.

Here's a smooch from Aletheia's San Antonio trip last month.

Taken: October 20
27 Months, 17 Days

Aletheia O'Lantern

2008-11-02T03:42:00.003-07:00

Apple Break

2008-11-02T03:42:00.001-07:00

Technically, she was supposed to bob for this, but Lillianna just handed her one.

Prowling

2008-11-02T03:41:00.001-07:00

The Papparazzi Shot

2008-11-02T03:40:00.005-07:00

Running

2008-11-02T03:40:00.003-07:00

in the Fire Truck

2008-11-02T03:40:00.001-07:00

Convincing her to let the other kids have a turn was a challenge.

First Jack O'Lantern

2008-10-29T22:55:00.001-06:00

Dandy Lion

2008-10-25T18:09:00.001-06:00

27 Months, 22 Days

Pumpkin Sitting

2008-10-24T06:27:00.001-06:00

So, here's a funny moment from yesterday. We gave Aletheia some grapes to snack on, but we had accidentally bought grapes with seeds instead of the seedless kind we usually get. Aletheia took one bite, spit it out, and in a surprised voice said: "That is NOT delicious!"

Apparently she doesn't know the word 'yucky.' But she made her point.

Great-Grandparent Time

2008-10-21T16:35:00.001-06:00

Aletheia's been in San Antonio this week and I've been in Nashville hob-knobbing with Walter Brueggemann and Bryan McLaren. Here's a shot that Grammy took.

On the Big Girl Swing

2008-10-13T06:03:00.001-06:00

26 Months, 17 Days

Instructions for the Babysitter

2008-10-09T15:15:00.003-06:00

We try to put Aletheia to bed between 8:30 and 9:00. The standard routine is something like this:

Snack at 7:30ish. Give her a banana or a yogurt tube out of the fridge, plus a cup of water. If she wants more, let her have it. We figure she knows if she’s hungry or not—within reason.

A bath around 7:45. Then we let her set on the counter with her feet in the right hand sink while we brush her teeth. We brush them first and then she gets to hold the toothbrush and brush them. Use the Elmo toothbrush. Then turn the water back on for her to rinse the brush, and hold the toothbrush holder up. She’ll object if you take the brush away from her, but she’ll put it up herself if you ask her to.

8:00ish—in her bedroom. Put on pajamas. She’ll probably want to listen to the Laurie Berkner “Buzz Buzz” CD. If she says “Pig on Her Head,” “Bumblebee” or “I’m a Mess” she’s referring to songs on that CD. She changes the tracks herself and finds the songs she wants to hear.

She’ll love you forever if you read stories to her. She’ll probably pick out what she wants. If she says “Margarita” (sometimes it comes out more like “Maria”) she means the book called “Hi!” For most of her books, she likes it if you stop before the last word of a sentence and let her say it.

8:30ish. Take out the Buzz Buzz CD and put in Mother Earth lullabies. She might object, but tell her it’s time for her “bedtime music.” (Buzz Buzz keeps her awake.) Tell her it’s time to turn out the light—if you hold her up, she’ll pull the chord herself. Then we hold her while we sing “Abide with Me.” If you don’t know it, "Jesus Loves Me" might be a good substitute. Then we pray the Lord’s Prayer and another little prayer for her. And then it’s bedtime.

She absolutely must have the ladybug pillow and blanket or Armageddon will commence. We also let her have books and toys in her bed.

Hopefully that will go well and you’ll be done with the hard work for the night. If she cries, I’d let her cry it out for a while. We don’t let her back out of bed. If she starts crying and just won’t stop, we sometimes turn on her ladybug lamp on the floor and tell her she can read but she has to stay in bed. If she asks for a snack, we give her more water (she can have a sippy cup in bed). If she really insists, half a banana is okay. But don’t pick her up or you are doomed. That’s only for if she seems seriously sick, is bleeding, or has a gun. If she does get a gun, pick her up, kiss her cheek, and start singing the alphabet. It’s your only hope.

Now, for the important thing. The Wii is on the “front” input of the TV. Dish Network is AV2. If she asks for Super Why, she can see another episode or two tonight. Turn on the Dish Network, set the TV channel to AV2 and press “DVR” twice on the remote to get to the saved programs. They are in alphabetical order. Start any Super Why show—it makes no difference to her. At some point in the show, one segment will focus on a cute little pig-tailed girl called Wonder Red, and Aletheia will start crying and saying “Super Why! Super Why!” Fast forward until the boy in the green jumpsuit and cape is back on the screen. I don’t know why Aletheia hates Red, but she does. It’s not a battle worth fighting.

On the Train

2008-10-06T23:56:00.001-06:00

On the Pedal Boat

2008-10-04T22:41:00.001-06:00

Not nearly as much fun as the little boats, apparently. She didn't like the vest.

"Aletheia Boat?"

2008-09-30T21:52:00.001-06:00

Aletheia keeps asking to watch the video of her first boat ride. When we're at the computer, she'll walk up and say "Aletheia boat? Aletheia boat?" On Saturday we were watching it again and she started asking "Go boats? Go boats?" So we went back. Maybe I'm an indulgent dad, but we only get 52 Saturdays every year. If there's nothing particularly going on and the kid wants to go boats, then we will go boats. It more fun than anything I had in mind.

Captain Aletheia

2008-09-29T23:27:00.001-06:00

26 Months, 10 Days

Tragic TV Moments

2008-09-21T17:50:00.007-06:00

So, here's the thing. Since Aletheia turned two, we've been letting her watch a little TV--about an hour a day. As far as she knows, there are only three programs in the world: Sesame Street, her Laurie Berkner Band DVD, and Super Why.

Now, some of you might not be familiar with Super Why. It's a show aimed at the preschool set that teaches kids how to read using a variety of techniques. The main characters all live in "Storybook Village" which is populated with characters from classic children's stories. The big four are Little Red Riding Hood, Pig (one of the Three Little, I think), Princess Pea, and the ringleader, Whyatt (the only non-story character). The episodes are incredibly formulaic, like Law and Order for the pull-ups crowd. Whyatt gets a picture message on his iPhone, finds out one of the gang has some kind of dilemma, and calls them all to the clubhouse where they fly into a book with a related situation to learn from the characters. "I lied to my mom and I don't know what to do--let's go talk to Pinocchio!" (Yeah, there's a whopping big inconsistency in the whole show. In theory, they already live with all the storybook characters, so they should be able to walk down the block, but inside they pull a book off the shelf and fly into some weird 2-D book environment.)

In order to enter the story, they turn into the "Super Readers" complete with costume and name change. They become "Wonder Red, with Word Power!"; "Alpha Pig, with Alphabet Power!"; "Princess Presto with Spelling Power" and "Super Why, with the Power to Read!" And, of course, there is "Super You with the Power to Help!"

Here's the gang, in their Super Readers pose:

Aletheia loves this show. Loves it, loves it, loves it. Like capital L-O-V-E with smooches and hugs. And she has a mad, deep, toddler crush on Whyatt. Probably five days out of seven we hear the "Super Why" chant from her. "SuperWhySuperWhySuperWhySuperWhy Pleeeeeeeease?" But what's weird is her love for Whyatt does not spread to the other characters. She is, at best, indifferent to Princess Presto and Alpha Pig. She'll watch when they are on, but you can tell she's just waiting for her beloved Super Why to get back on the screen. And then there is Wonder Red. Aletheia hates her. Take her crazy love for Whyatt, multiply it by five and throw a minus sign on it, and that's how she feels about Red. When there's a Wonder Red segment going, Allie bursts into tears and refuses to watch. The chant starts again. "SuperWhySuperWhySuperWhyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!" She almost acts scared, like Red took a machete to her teddy bear. It is seriously intense. I've tried to help her get over it. "Hey, that's Wonder Red! She's really nice. That's Super Why's best friend!" But it gets nowhere. If I didn't know any better, I'd think she was jealous.

We've seen something similar with Sesame Street, where Aletheia is a huge Elmo fanatic and obviously perks up when he is on, but there's no real particular dislike of another muppet, just a special love for the little red guy. This thing with Wonder Red is just weird. It's a good thing that she's just a cartoon, because otherwise I think a restraining order would be called for. I wouldn't trust Aletheia not to hire a hit man. It's that bad.

Toddler brains. They are funny things.

Got to go. Wonder Red is on again, and I need to fast forward.

Update: Here she is, the object of my daughter's passionate rage.

Hat and Necklace

2008-09-18T17:46:00.001-06:00

We are very seldom without a hat these days.

26 Months, 15 Days

Enjoying the Final Product

2008-09-18T17:45:00.001-06:00

Okay, not the best possible picture of mommy, but making cookies is hard work!

26 Months, 3 Days

Video: Boat Ride

2008-09-13T16:33:00.000-06:00

This is what we did today.

Adding Sprinkles

2008-09-10T21:06:00.001-06:00

Cutting Out Cookies

2008-09-10T07:08:00.001-06:00

26 Months, 3 Days

Getting Ready to Bake Cookies

2008-09-06T20:30:00.001-06:00

26 Months, 3 Days

Going Up

2008-09-04T22:47:00.001-06:00

Disaster! We finally made time to take Aletheia to the North Carolina Zoo, and when we got there, we realized that the camera was at home. So just imagine all the wonderful pictures we would have had. Guess we have incentive to go again soon.

The kid is getting more and more verbal all the time. Sentences are just tumbling out--and she's funny. Whenever we saw a big animal--an elephant or a bison, or a rhino--Aletheia would call out "It'll eat you!" She didn't seemed worried about it or scared--she just wanted to let us know. So we carefully pointed out that the elephants and bison were obviously eating grass. Every time we saw any animal graze, we showed her again. "Look, it's eating grass!"

Until we got to the lions, when I said. "Do you see them? They will eat you."

She just nodded and said "yeah"--like she knew it all along. Something in here was bound to eat kids.

One of the elephants came right up to the fence, so she was only about four or five feet away from it. (It was the one they call Artie.) Artie made the biggest impression of anything that day. Just ask her what she saw at the zoo, and she'll smile and say "Elephant!" (And then, because we drilled it in, she'll usually add "It eats grass.")

In other news, she's going through a big hat phase. Can't go anywhere without a hat. When I got her out of bed yesterday, she had already put one on. She's quite the fashionplate.

And her new big sentence is "I love it!" I have no idea where this one started, but she loves everything in the universe, apparently.

"Want to watch Sesame Street?"
"I love it!"

"Here's your blanket."
"I love it!"

"Let's read a storybook."
"I love it!"

"You need to eat some broccoli now."
"I love it!"

This happy-go-lucky, exceedingly grateful attitude toward life is not something, I should add, that she inherited from me.

She also made me and her mommy laugh really hard tonight. She was desperately trying to avoid going to bed, and was pulling out all the stops. She was pointing to everything in the room and calling out what it was. "Yellow blanket!" "Green pillow!" "Red shirt!" She was making silly faces and hiding under the blankets. She told us both that she loved us. She jumped around and laughed and nuzzled noses with us. And in the middle of all this activity she sits up and yells "I'm silly!"

I can't remember exactly what had come before, but it was one of those perfectly timed moments that made us both laugh out loud--which made her laugh really hard, and she said it again, "I'm silly!"

I love it.

In Motion

2008-08-27T23:58:00.001-06:00

Sometimes it's really hard to get her to stop and pose.

25 Months, 22 Days

Exploring

2008-08-26T20:28:00.001-06:00

25 Months, 22 Days

Girl in a Garden

2008-08-26T07:03:00.001-06:00

25 Months, 22 Days

With the Beloved Ladybug Ball

2008-08-20T22:43:00.001-06:00

25 Months, 8 Days

Aletheia had her two years check-up this morning, and the last round of immunizations until she turns four. She's 75% across the board on the growth charts, still tall for her age. The exact numbers are 34 1/2 inches tall, 29 pounds.

The doctor was impressed with her letter recognition ability--Aletheia has now mastered the (upper case) alphabet, able to correctly name any of the 26 letters she is shown. Apparently that's ahead of the curve for 25 months olds. She's also counting up to 14 now, and starting to learn some colors. She's most consistent with orange and black--the former because she associates it with the fruit, I think--but she's getting red, blue and green right more often now. She seems to have a mental block with yellow, though.

So, healthy, happy, tall and learning more all the time. Things are good at two years old.

Portrait of a Little Girl

2008-08-16T08:32:00.001-06:00

25 Months, 8 Days

Going Up

2008-08-12T18:58:00.001-06:00

25 Months, 8 Days

Sliding

2008-08-11T17:52:00.001-06:00

25 Months, 8 Days

Seriously, We Loooooove Watermelon

2008-08-07T18:52:00.001-06:00

25 Months, 1 Day

We Love Watermelon!

2008-08-06T05:48:00.001-06:00

25 Months, 1 Day

Happiness

2008-07-30T00:39:00.001-06:00

24 Months, 8 Days

Jane Hollywood

2008-07-28T22:40:00.001-06:00

I was tired of her "borrowing" mine. "Glasses? Glasses? Glasses?" I bought her these and a bucket and shovel for her sandbox, and you'd think I had given her the best thing possible.

"My bucket! Myyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy buck-et!"

It was 78 cents. I should've bought her ten of 'em.

Answer to the name game below:
Teresa, Tessa for short, after Teresa of Avila
Aidan, after...well, Aidan, missionary to the Scots

The Cutest Thing You've Ever Seen

2008-07-20T13:18:00.001-06:00

23 Months, 5 Days

Water Woes

2008-07-19T19:48:00.001-06:00

24 Months, 5 Days

Getting Ready for Some Changes

2008-07-18T23:31:00.004-06:00

These pictures are a little over a month old. (They were actually taken on my birthday.) Mommy and I decided to get a little basic craftsmanship practice by making Aletheia's toddler bed ourselves, and when Aletheia saw us working, she wanted to get in on the act. So here are a couple of shots of her sanding one of the boards for her bed (which is not quite finished yet--I still need to add a safety rail.)

23 Months, 5 Days

In other news, it's a good thing that we are getting ready to move Allie out of her crib, because we just found out on Monday that she will become a big sister around next March. Someone else will need that sleeping space.

Because I'm an obsessive advance planner, we are starting to work on names for the next one. There are some ideas we had been bandying about, but after grabbing some baby name books and starting from scratch, a couple of former long-shots have risen to the top. We want our kids' names to have some kind of significant Christian meaning, preferably in a way that connects to us personally, so here's what we are leaning toward now:

If it's a girl, we might give her the name of a 16th century mystic whose books we have been reading as part of our nightly devotionals. She was a woman of prayer and humility, whose chief desire was to know and love God as deeply as possible, and her books reflect that spirit. It used to be a common name but hasn't been popular for a while. There is, however, a cute and trendy five-letter nickname that we would probably call the kid most of the time. This one shouldn't be hard to guess if you are up to speed on your 16th century Christian writers.

If it's a boy, we're looking a little further back in history to a missionary in the British Isles back in the 6th century. This name has a Celtic flavor to it, and is mentioned in a song by one of our favorite musical artists. What we know of this particular saint is a mix of history and legend, but there is no doubt that he was real and had a big impact. The Venerable Bede praised him highly in his Ecclesiastical History of the English Peoples. One old story recounts how this missionary, dedicated to poverty and humility, was given a grand, well-trained horse by a king who had befriended him, and who wanted him to have proper transportation. The horse was gratefully received, used for a day or two, and then passed on to a beggar. We both really like the name. The only downside is, so did about five bajillion other American families in the last few years. It's a bit too popular for my taste, but that's not a deal-breaker.

Ladybug Ride

2008-07-16T21:07:00.001-06:00

One seldom sees the rare North Carolina Giant Ladybug, and it is even more unusual to get a ride from one. Lucky girl.

Camera Search

2008-07-15T23:38:00.001-06:00

Hey, Aletheia Update fans!

I'm trying to get you some new pics. Just as soon as I figure out where I sat the camera. Or who stole it.

With Daddy at the Birthday Party

2008-07-10T00:06:00.001-06:00

I need a haircut.

Hanging Around With the Big(ger) Girls

2008-07-08T22:25:00.001-06:00

A blurry action pic with Lilliana (left) and Caitlin.

Lilliana and her little sister Hannah are Aletheia's best friends. Every time we go to church she starts the "Lilliana-Hannah-Lilliana-Hannah" chant from her car seat while we're still in the parking lot. She even talks about them when she's on the phone to Grammy or Memaw.

"Lilliana-Hannah friends!"

Which brings me to another interesting point--Aletheia seems to mentally cluster people by who they belong with. So while it's possible for her to talk about individuals, she usually mentions a couple or trio of people:

Memaw-Pawpaw
Mark and Lisa
Grammy-Granddaddy
Uncle Kasey, Tia Mia* and Coben Dan

And often throughout the day she'll say "Mommy, Daddy, A-lay-ee-uh" Everyone is in a relationship cluster. Maybe that's not unusual for kids, but it is striking pronounced in her. And so "Lilliana-Hannah." They're filed together.

Also, I think watching the older girls swing has prompted Aletheia's recent interest in the "big kids' swing." She's trying to graduate out of the toddler swing, and--based on tonight's performance--doing a good job of it. She swung herself for about 10 minutes and then dismounted perfectly. One more step out of babyhood.

*Allie can't quite say "Maria." But "Tia Mia" sounds cute, anyway.

In the Pool, With the Very Beloved Ladybug Ball

2008-07-06T20:14:00.001-06:00

One More Slide Before the Party Begins

2008-07-04T20:46:00.001-06:00

On Her Playset, Pre-Party

2008-07-03T22:00:00.001-06:00

The house we bought here in NC came with an old playset in the back yard. The deck floor was old plywood that was rotting away, and most of the safety rails had come off. There was no longer any slide or swings, and the ladder was rickety and unsafe. But the basic framework for a playset was still intact and sturdy, although there weren't any true right angles and the posts were far from level. Still, I thought we could fix it up.

I've been working on it off and on for a while. It was easy to put in a toddler swing, so we've been using that from the start. I finished rebuilding the deck (out of alternating 1x4's and 1x6's rather than plywood), and I found a good deal on a slide and some other accessories (like the toy telescope you cans see on the left) and ordered them a month or two ago. But then I got bogged down with other projects,and didn't finish it all until the day before the party, when I added the last safety rails (1x6's), connected a ladder I built out of 2x4's, and created a sandbox under the deck.

Aletheia, as you can see, was delighted. She loves scrambling up the ladder and being a whole four feet off the ground. She does this funny kind of skipping dance when she's really happy, and we were treated to about 10 solid minutes of it when she first climbed onto the deck. And then she said "Thank you, Daddy!" and gave me and her Mommy lots and lots of kisses.

So, that was worthwhile.

Monday night we stayed up on the deck for a while after sunset and watched the fireflies.

For the party Tuesday, we had ten kids around between 2 and 5, and the newly rebuilt structures got a lot of use. It was a blast watching them all.

Birthday Party!: The Cake (Candles Blown Out)

2008-07-02T06:30:00.003-06:00

Birthday Party!: The Cake

2008-07-02T06:30:00.001-06:00

Leftover Jenga

2008-06-30T22:10:00.001-06:00

Sorry for the updateless days recently. I was under the mistaken impression that we didn't have any decent unblogged photos, but when I looked at the camera tonight, there were a bunch. And we're having a (slightly early) birthday party for the kid tomorrow, so there should be some prime photo-ops there.

Mommy took this one tonight at dinner. I wasn't there, but she solemnly avows that Aletheia took it upon herself to stack her leftovers like this. She certainly seems happy with herself.

And no! That's not coffee! It's just a handy, minimal-spill container for Aletheia's water.

But, I should mention, she does want to try coffee really badly. Anytime I have a cup and she's around, the "Coffee? Coffee?" chant starts ups. I think because I let her have ice cream and popsicles but keep coffee all to myself, she must think that it is unimaginably delicious.

Juneywhank Falls

2008-06-24T20:46:00.001-06:00

Another shot from our Smoky Mountain camping trip

Acclimatizing

2008-06-18T07:02:00.001-06:00

I was emailed this picture yesterday while in class. It looks like Aletheia is getting more comfortable holding Coben.

23 Months, 14 Days

Sometimes Hiking is Just Hard

2008-06-12T05:59:00.002-06:00

Posting may be skimpy or non-existent until the 23rd. Everyone's flying out-of-town again today, and I'll be in a class all next week, away from Sandy and Aletheia. But we'll be back to blogging soon!

Waving the Flashlight

2008-06-10T21:34:00.001-06:00

Mountain Gal

2008-06-08T22:05:00.001-06:00

I didn't quite get this shot, but I love the look on her face. Background isn't bad, either.

Aletheia continues to be tons of fun. The sentences are really starting to roll out now. We're on the brink of real conversations. And I'm always amazed at the things she is picking up on. Today was my birthday, and when her mommy asked her to "say happy birthday to Daddy" she said "Happy birthday to you!" I guess she heard the song enough by now to know the whole phrase, but it was still pretty nifty. Later on as I was getting ready to go to Home Depot (for reasons to be blogged about soon), Aletheia called out "I love you, Daddy!"

So, I'm glad we kept her.

Friday we took Aletheia to her first movie, at the drive-in theater in Henderson, NC. They have triple features on Fridays, and this one was Kung Fu Panda, Indiana Jones and the Studio of Warmed Over Cliches, and Leatherheads. We haven't let Allie watch much TV, so we knew that this would be a big night for her, but I had no idea how big. As soon as the screen lit up with ads and previews, she tilted her head back and started roaring with laughter. It's so fun to see her experiencing things for the first time. She had no idea that you could drive someplace and watch a cartoon on a ginormous screen like that. Her world is changed.

When the movie started, she had fun identifying familiar things. Panda! Flower! Bird! Tiger! Mouse! Turtle! And she ate about 10 cubic meters of popcorn.

We were hoping that she would fall asleep during Kung Fu Panda so that we could stay and watch the next one or two, but Aletheia was determined to stay awake as long as there were moving pictures on the magic sign. So we took off about twenty minutes into Indiana Jones, which I knew were the only good twenty minutes in the movie, since I had already seen it.

On the way home a tire blew out--at 11:45 on I-85. I pulled the car over and dug out the jack and the spare. Allie started screaming, so Sandy got her our of the car seat and held by the side of the road. I figured someone would probably pull in behind us when they saw we had an unhappy toddler and I was changing the tire by myself, but NO ONE DID, which is just one more proof that we don't live in Texas anymore, but I knew that already.

Anyway, the whole point of this story is that Sandy started trying to explain what was going on in ways that the kid could understand. No sooner had she said "the tire broke" than Aletheia burst out with "Daddy fix it!" in this tone of complete toddler confidence that I don't think anyone can replicate after age four. It was the first time we had been in a situation like that, and to be the beneficiary of such unbridled trust is, to my way of thinking, pretty much the best thing that can happen to anyone anywhere.

State Line

2008-06-05T20:11:00.001-06:00

I love the way she's leaning a little with her hand on the sign. Good pose.

Hiking With Mommy

2008-06-04T21:54:00.001-06:00

DANGER!

2008-06-02T12:58:00.001-06:00

Smoky Mountain Trip

2008-05-30T20:19:00.003-06:00

We managed to take off a couple of days for a barely-planned trip to the Smokies. It was Aletheia's first time to go camping--she did great! We helped her get the idea by setting up the tent in the front yard before we left. You can it in the background of this shot.

You can also see our cars--a Pontiac Vibe and a Scion xB. Interesting side note--we used to get comments like "well, that's a little bitty car isn't it?" and "what does it want to be when it grows up?" That was before gas hit $4.00 a gallon. Now what we hear most often is "Hey, what kind of gas mileage do you get in that?" Big, burly guys with handlebar mustaches and pet bears will run up to me in the parking lot to ask about fuel efficiency. Not so many jokes as there used to be.

Here Mommy and Aletheia give the tent a trial run. It seems to work.

In the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a place called Cade's Cove. It's a large valley surrounded by mountains that was settled in the early 1800's, and many of the original buildings are still there--including three churches. I think this shot is from the Primitive Baptist one, but it might be Methodist. Methodist would be better, because they probably wouldn't mind dancing inside quite so much.

And here's a series taken within seconds of each other during a gas stop.

Later that day, back in the park, we did the hike up to Laurel Falls.

There were more mixed emotions on the second leg of the journey.

More trip highlights coming soon!

Happy to Meet Cousin Coben

2008-05-26T23:13:00.000-06:00

But not so sure about holding him...

"Read to Me, Pawpaw!"

2008-05-25T23:11:00.000-06:00

Sharing a Moment

2008-05-24T22:46:00.001-06:00

Escaping

2008-05-24T22:45:00.001-06:00

Walking With Memaw 2

2008-05-23T22:27:00.001-06:00

Walking With Memaw 1

2008-05-23T22:26:00.001-06:00

More Cuteness at Grammy's House

2008-05-22T22:04:00.001-06:00

To make up for my recent slackness, I'm initiating a new project: "Two A Day 'Til The End Of May." That's right--doubleplusgood Aletheiousity for the next week and day.

A couple of new little milestones this week. Aletheia and I had our weekly Daddy-Daughter Date Night yesterday, and this time we went to Elmo's Diner. Allie is a fan of their blueberry pancakes. They also have simple coloring sheets for the kids. I wrote her name at the top of the page, and she promptly pointed to the first letter and said "A!" She then proceeded to hand me a crayon and insist "A!" So I wrote another A and another and another--about four altogether. At that point she used her crayon to draw a very passable A herself, pointed to it and proudly proclaimed "A!" One down, 25 to go. But it impressed the heck out of me. I had no idea she could write an A yet. Unfortunately, I left the page on the table. You'll just have to take my word for it.

She made me and her mommy laugh hard this morning with her new record for most words in a sentence. We were just waking up and she was in our bed playing around and giggling, when she suddenly slid down, and walked to the door. Just before she went out into the hallway, she turned around and proclaimed "I'll be back in a minute!" We probably tell her that about ten times a day, so it's not a big surprise that she picked up on it, but we weren't expecting six words in a row out of her--three or four has been the standard until now.

This stage is a blast.

Big Smile

2008-05-22T18:56:00.001-06:00

Another long break between updates--we had a vacation last week to see cousin Coben (and Uncle Kasey and Tia Maria and Grammy and Granddaddy and Memaw and Pawpaw) more pics to come soon, but here's a good one of Aletheia smiling at Grammy's house to kick off the vacation review.

22 Months, 10 Days

First Trip To The Dentist

2008-05-08T19:54:00.001-06:00

Unfortunately, the size and resolution settings on the camera were at the lowest possible setting when these were taken. Normally those are maxed out, so I'm not sure when they got changed, but we didn't notice until it was too late. So the picture isn't all that it could be.

On the other hand, really good news from the dentist today! Aletheia was very brave and calm through most of the exam, and they said her teeth look great! Well-spaced, clean, etc. Her picture is now up on their patient wall for everyone to see what a perfect toddler smile looks like. No need to come back for another year. One more little milestone down!

22 Months, 5 Days

Hugs?

2008-05-08T06:44:00.001-06:00

Future Soccer Star

2008-05-02T22:01:00.001-06:00

21 Months, 26 Days

Little Girl, Big Trees

2008-05-01T18:13:00.001-06:00

21 Months, 26 Days

LocoPop

2008-04-29T19:43:00.002-06:00

Aletheia enjoying a LocoPop at Last Friday in Hillsborough, NC. She has an unorthodox way of holding popsicles, but it works for her.

21 Months, 22 Days

Video: Looking At Herself

2008-04-26T09:28:00.001-06:00

20080426 Aletheia Looking At Herself
Originally uploaded by PaterAletheias

21 Months, 22 Days

Zebra Tamer

2008-04-25T19:19:00.001-06:00

Aletheia visited the Mebane Dogwood Festival tonight. Zero interest in snow cones, but she did enjoy her zebra ride.

In other news, she can consistently count the number of toes she ahs on one foot--one, two, fwee, foah, fibe! Fibe toes!

21 Months, 22 Days

Ponytails

2008-04-21T08:30:00.001-06:00

21 Months, 18 Days

Making Friends

2008-04-19T22:28:00.001-06:00

Been a busy week again. Aletheia just returned from a visit to her great-grandparents--that's why we haven't updated in a while. And yesterday, a new cousin was born: Coben Dan, 9 pounds, 3 ounces, 22 1/2 inches long. Big boy! Congratulations go to Uncle Kasey and Tia Maria.

Brushing

2008-04-09T00:08:00.001-06:00

Man, look at those big brown eyes!

21 Months

Bubble Mower

2008-04-05T15:06:00.001-06:00

We've started blowing bubbles with her recently, and she loves it, but she can't do it herself. So we picked up a bubble-blowing lawnmower so she can share the bubble-blowing duties (and prepare for future yard-work chores). It was a big hit

21 Months, 1 Day

Beach Girl 4

2008-04-02T00:43:00.001-06:00

Things got worse with Aletheia before they got better. She was badly enough dehydrated that we had to take her to the hospital for an IV on Saturday. After that, she perked up and started recovering, but then her mommy got sick. So far, I've avoided it, but for all I know it'll hit tomorrow.

In other news, she's starting to count things, although she's a little shaky after "2". But she can recite 1-8 pretty well in order. And this three-new-words-a-day phenomenon is pretty amazing. Every time I turn around she's saying something new that I didn't think she could say.

Beach Girl 3

2008-03-27T22:44:00.001-06:00

I know you can't see the kid very well in this one, but I really liked the overall feel of the picture and decided to post it.

It's a rough night to be a 20-month-old in our family. Allie has some kind of stomach bug. She vomited over and over until there was nothing left, and then went into dry heaves for a while. That's hard to watch. We're doing our best to get some Pedialyte down her--she won't take her sippy cup, but if we put it in an eye-dropper and tell her it's medicine, she acquiesces. He temp is hovering around 98, so I guess that's okay. We'll try to get her in to the pediatrician in the morning unless there is some kind of drastic improvement.

In other news this week, Aletheia is getting much better at using a spoon, and she's decided that she wants to use the big-girl potty after her baths. We weren't pushing to start potty training this early, but if she's interested, we're not saying no, either.

Aletheia and Memaw

2008-03-25T19:48:00.001-06:00

This is an old one that was still on the camera--Aletheia and her Memaw on December 30th.

I wasn't sure that Aletheia knew for sure who "Memaw" was until she was scrolling through the pictures on our camera last week (she's strangely good with technology). She got to this picture and said "Memaw!" Pretty good proof.

17 Months, 27 Days

First Easter Egg

2008-03-23T21:22:00.001-06:00

And so far, the only one. Aletheia was happy to find this one, and wasn't interested in looking any further. It has a super-bouncy rubber ball inside, and that seemed like plenty of fun for her.

But according to the rules, all the kids got to go home with 13 eggs, so she wound up with a full basket anyway.

20 Months, 19 Days

Every Bunny Needs Some Bunny Sometime

2008-03-21T04:36:00.001-06:00

Aletheia made this during storytime at the library.

20M 16D

Beach Girl 2

2008-03-19T19:07:00.001-06:00

Beach Girl

2008-03-18T07:01:00.001-06:00

Aletheia's first trip to the beach (Sunset beach, NC).

Winding Down

2008-03-12T21:25:00.001-06:00

Getting tired during her bedtime snack.

20 Months, 9 Days

Ready to Read

2008-03-08T18:54:00.001-07:00

20 Months, 5 Days

Recuperating

2008-03-05T22:06:00.001-07:00

Aletheia is a little sick this week. Cough, fever--nothing too bad, but she needs her rest.

20 Months

"Smile!"

2008-03-03T20:56:00.001-07:00

Aletheia is exactly 20 months old today! This is what she does when you ask her to smile.

International Friends

2008-02-28T22:38:00.001-07:00

Here's a quick shot of Aletheia with our new friend Jane from Buenos Aires.

19 Months

A Quotation

2008-02-27T12:12:00.003-07:00

I ran across this while looking for something else and wanted to be sure I didn't lose it. This is as good a place as any.

Certain is it that there is no kind of affection so purely angelic as of a father to a daughter. In love to our wives there is desire; to our sons, ambition; but to our daughters there is something which there are no words to express.

Joseph Addison

Bedtime Story

2008-02-25T20:11:00.001-07:00

19 Months, 22 Days

Minty Fresh Kisses

2008-02-21T20:59:00.001-07:00

Aletheia brushing her teeth while wrapped up in her duck towel.

And finally, after three days of kisses for Elmo and none for her parents, Mommy and Daddy received sweet little good-night kisses from the kiddo.

19 Months, 18 Days

A New Milestone

2008-02-20T20:59:00.002-07:00

I mentioned yesterday that Aletheia's vocabulary is growing day by day now. Today we had another milestone--full sentences. Nothing fancy, but a real subject-verb-object combo. It happened twice:

"I have milk."
"It's a puppy." (Looking at a picture in a book.)

Pretty good for a kid who's 19 months and 17 days old.

Allie had her first visit with her new pediatrician, Dr. Best, today. No illness or anything, this was just the initial "get to know you" appointment. The new stats: 25 pounds, 32 inches. She's about 50th percentile on weight, 75th on height, and 90th for head circumference. Tall, slim, lots of brains. Lucky girl.

She kissed Elmo goodnight but still won't kiss us. If only I were red and furry.

Another Moment on the Swing

2008-02-19T22:38:00.001-07:00

It's still very busy around here. Not everything is unboxed yet--at home or at my office--and the normal new job/new city/new home transitions are going on. But Aletheia appears to have adjusted well. She's sleeping through the night again, and she has several new little friends at church. So all is good.

We're definitely moving into toddlerdom. She's learning how to object, and occasionally there's a mini-tantrum, although she's just as likely to take a move from the civil disobedience playbook and go limp. But those are rare occurrences. She's still the most good-natured kid I know.

She's reached the stage where she thinks it is great fun to do for mommy and daddy what they have been doing for her. She'll feed me, brush my hair, tickle me. It's a lot of fun. And her vocabulary seems to grow every day. Recently she's mastered light, shoes, socks, shirt, and lady. She really likes green beans, but for the moment she calls them "bean beans," which somehow is about the funnest thing I've ever heard. She had green beans tonight, and I couldn't stop laughing, which just encouraged her. "Bean beans! Bean beans! Bean beans!" she chanted, giggling all the while. And I got one of her adorable squinty-eyed smiles.

She also knows the Sesame Street character Elmo, although we don't know how, since she never watches TV. But he's on her diapers, and on a couple of toys. And she just loves him. But she can't quite pronounce his name right. "Melmo! Melmo!"

Mommy bought her a book with an Elmo puppet, and when the Elmo puppet is talking to her, she's mesmerized. "Can you clap, Aletheia?" And she clap, clap, claps, wide-eyed, in wonder. "Can you rub your tummy?" Rub, rub, rub. "Can I get a kiss?" She leans in and kisses Elmo on the cheek, which she won't do for mommy or daddy yet. But that's okay, too.

What We Did Today

2008-02-16T12:40:00.001-07:00

We already had the frame of a swingset in the backyard, so we finally got around to adding a toddler swing. It was a hit.

19 Month, 13 Days

Training Has Begun

2008-02-16T06:35:00.001-07:00

19 Months, 9 Days