2018 Year in Review

Happy New Year!

Tonight, we celebrated the arrival of the new year with a new celebration: an apple cider toast followed by a viewing of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.  It was the perfect end to an otherwise OK year.

Here are a few thoughts and highlights on the year 2018.

Henry turned 5 in October and we celebrated with a birthday party at the local trampoline park.

Henry absolutely loves trampolines but admittedly I was a little nervous because I was not sure how Henry would handle the extra attention.  He loved it.

In the 9 months leading up to his birthday, Henry had a good Spring 2018 semester at Visitation leading in to an otherwise good summer.

Henry enrolled in the Washington University Nursery School Summer Camp, and had a great few weeks.

He even enrolled in swim lessons and almost learned how to swim.  I was not sure what to expect, but he made the most of it and improved significantly.  Honestly, more than anything, it was fear that was holding him back.  Henry also took swimming at Webster University.  I thought we would be back in 2019, but Henry wants to do soccer or tennis.

Henry fell in love with dinosaurs.  It may have to do more with the video game Jurassic Park than anything else, but he loves dinosaurs and his Christmas haul is surely an indication of that.

(to be continued)

écrevisse

Henry is with Maman this week in Belgium visiting family and taking it all in.  Henry is just 4-years old and he has already been to Europe twice.

I had barely left Missouri when I first boarded a plane to study abroad as a senior in college.

The return of the chickens

Well, all good things must come to an end as they say…

After four weeks of watching our chickens grow, it was time to return them their owners.

Henry and I did get a chance to hangout with the chickens one last time before bring them back.  We took pictures and chased Blackbird around the back yard for a while.  Blackbird was by far the fast and most elusive.

Henry and I talked about how the return would go and he seemed OK with it.  At one point, he reminded me that we were getting fish and that we might be chickens again.

After we dropped off the box with the farmer, I could tell that Henry was concerned.  That his demeanor had changed.  He casually suggested that we could bring the chickens back home.  I started to tear up and I kept quiet.  As we unloaded the last of the supplies, he asked again if we could keep them.  I struggled to keep it together.  I eventually found a way to say that the chickens would be going to their new home and that it was time to go get ice pops.  That was enough to calm Henry, though I could tell he was upset.

I treated him to a smoothie and we returned home…

One foot in the village

Henry may spend most of his life in an urban or suburban setting.  Henry lives in Missouri.  But, I want him to feel a connection to Missour-uh.

I cannot claim to have been brought up on a farm, though I spent my share of weekends on a Hagedorn’s Farm in Rosebud, Missouri.  My hope is that Henry will eventually understand what it means to keep one foot in the village.

Americans are generally divorced from the farm.  And, my latest move as a father clearly demonstrates that.  Over the weekend, I rented four chickens from a local St. Louis business that specializes in backyard farming.

Henry responded with great excitement.

His first task was to name the birds.  Unsurprisingly, he offered a number of naming options that reflected the outward appearance of our visitors.  The black chicken was promptly named Blackbird.  The yellow chicken was give two or three names before Henry settled on Sun.  The charcoal chicken was name Evo though I had to clarify a few times as I thought he was saying Evil.  The yellow-striped chicken was eventually named Birdy, though I think he wanted to name her Racer Bird.

Henry has been especially kind to the birds.  He has an extraordinary sense of concern and empathy for most everything, so I was not surprised to see this.

More updates to come…

Power Wing

On Sunday, Henry and I found a Swallowtail butterfly in the back yard.

The Swallowtail was favoring one wing and did not even try to fly away when I reached down to pick him up.

I used this as an opportunity to explain the few things I knew about butterflies. Henry convinced me to bring him inside.  I decided against my better judgement to bring him inside.

Henry and I let him stay on a plate with a paper towel and a few slices of kiwi and pear.

The butterfly made it through the night and when I woke up, Henry had moved the butterfly over so he could get a better view of the television.  It was clear: Henry had found a new friend.

I encouraged Henry to give him a name and yes, Henry named him Power Wing.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! 2018 is here with all the promise of a new year.

Christmas

Christmas 2017 was the usual joyous occasion.  Henry had predicted that Santa Claus was going to bring him a lot of presents and that prediction held true.

Christmas eve was held at the Grandma, Grandpa, Cabot, Kohler while Christmas day began at our house and ended at the house of Grandma, Grandpa, Max…

Henry ended up with two drones and two other remote control vehicles.  I was a big fan of remote control cars as a child, but at his age, the best I could have hope for would be a car that has one or two buttons and only turns while in reverse.

Phrases

I am surely going to regret the fact that I have not properly document the various words and phrases Henry has used over the past year or so, but here are a few that come to mind with explanations in parenthesis:

I am a little bit thirsty

Henry often uses the phrase little or little bit.

Can we buy this shovel for kids

Henry often refers to the small version of something as being for kids.

Don’t worry…

Henry often counters any expression of concern with the phrase don’t worry as if our primary concerns is for his safety.

Because…

Often pronounced pecause and used in all manner of conversation.

Oh, can you buy me that?

He seems to want everything at the moment, though he also understands that he is not going to get everything and is quick to back down.

If something’s not work, you better try something different.

As far as I can tell, this phrase comes from the movie Cars 3.

Christmas Concert

The Montessori had their Christmas concert today. Henry wore his Christmas sweater with pride and did a great job overall.

Henry did not seem as excited in the group photo. Hard to know why.

Pajama Party

The Montessori Room celebrated a pajama party today.  Henry obviously had a lot of fun with his best friend Jack Cooper. Henry and Jack were close last year, but have been largely inseparable (according to the teachers) this year.