One More Visits

Ola! Hi! It's me, Daniel. I have a story to tell you, okay? Once upon a time September was a time for lots of "one more" visits. 

 

See, I was moving to California. Papai already went to California on a big airplane because California is far away. He took all my toys. He took my bed and my limon--that's what we call the big green squashy pouf where I like to read before I go to sleep. Papai took my chair and booster seat to California too.

 

But before Mamae and Daniel flew on a big airplane, we stayed with GiGi and HeyYea. There was time for lots of "one more" visits with my friends and other people who love me a lot.

 

One More Story Time with Mrs. V 

Mrs. V is my friend.
She tells stories at the library
every Tuesday morning.
We counted, sang and danced too.
Bye bye, Mrs. V!

One More Times with Hunka Cheese

Hunka Cheese and I got to be crazy one more time.
I gave him a deer bone for his head
and I was a scary dinosaur-see my scales?



I showed him how to do 555555555555555
on the calculator.



He showed me
how to make my foot disappear.

Hunka Cheese is my buddy. Bye bye, Hunka Cheese!

 

One More Times with Josie and Papi

Josie really likes to read.
And she really likes me, too.

We shared books and hugs.
Bye bye, Josie and Papi.



At Chick Fila, I got a surprise!
Fire trucks and police cars!!



Papi teased me. After I lined up my cars just right,
he kept turning one the wrong way.
Papi, are you teasing me?!

One More Times with HeyYea


Crayons

Popsicles

Raspberry Lemonade

One More Times with Nana and DoDo

Cheeeeez! Uncle DoDo

Mamae and Auntie Nana



Bye bye, Auntie Nana and Uncle Dodo.


One More Times in My Rede

After naps, GiGi and I liked to sit in the rede.
We would swing and laugh when
it made a squeeeak sound.
She told me
OnceUponaTimeWhenDanielWasaBaby stories.

I was sad because
the rede had to stay in Texas.
Bye bye, rede.

Mickey and I went to California,
so I read stories to Teddy and Puppy one more times.
Bye bye, Teddy and Puppy.

One More Times in GiGi's Garden

I found this awesome hummingbird
when Mamae and I were shopping
one more times.

This blue dragonfly landed on a dragonfly! in GiGi's garden.
He was telling me bye bye, Daniel!



This red dragonfly was not working.
Papai and I saw a dinosaur
at the museum that was not working too.



GiGi and I found this bee in my
blue pool. It was not working.
See his stinger?!
And how fuzzy he is?
My friend Anthony saw it,
and said it was a dead bee.
Bye bye, Dad Bee.

Bye bye, GiGi's garden.
I'll come back to explore in November.

And that's . . .

The End AND The Beginning! 

 

On the Way to Oz

The past two months have been a blur.

In that undeniably predictable way, the weeks have picked up and moved on.

So have Cecilia, Will, and Daniel. Their move to California is complete.

 

This is about the umpteenth time I've tried to post,

and I'm out of words.

No mellow metaphors--no slick similes.

Just pictures. 

 

 



 

waiting for the movers

I *AM*A*ROBOT

 

Texas? California? Los Angeles? Houston?

 

Trying to make some order



when life hands out raggedy things.



D discovered how to become a dinosaur.

add scales

R O A R !

Yep.



Stegasaurus

Daniel Dinosaur



the start of a quilt for California



 

Two of my loves

Papai in California

get the Mickey Mouse garden gloves?!

Practicing for LA traffic

Wish we all could be California guys

Flying away

 

Daniel, since before you were born,
you've turned GiGi's world upside-down.



And that's the Beginning

Ever Think About It That Way?

Aren't you fascinated with the things young children say?  Here's a little peek into our preschooler's mind.

At a family gathering at Iris and Doug's home on Sunday afternoon, Daniel was yelling calling very assertively from the dining room.  Six year-old niece Zoe came to the kitchen.
Zoe:  Auntie Sandy, Daniel wants you.
Me:  What does he want?
Zoe:  He wants GiGi to come.
Me:  Why?
Zoe:  (whispers very close to my ear) So we won't have any more ear hurts.

One Tuesday, Daniel found a young friend walking out of the library with her siblings and mother.  He chatted her up about his crocodile backpack and the colors of her tie-dyed tee.  When we got to the street, he wanted to hold her hand to cross into the parking lot.  By this time, we knew that the kind, patient 7 year-old was named Tatum.  Chatterbox and I realized that we were parked right next to Tatum's van, so I thanked her for helping Daniel be safe in the parking lot and said good-bye.  Daniel said, "I wanna' go in Potato's car."

Will stays home with Daniel now that Cecilia has a summer job.  D's voice is so much lower and huskier now that he spends more time with Papai.

~> <~

Papai is great at sound effects and dialects.  Daniel has started to make this sound like a young goat.  Hard to describe, but  it's almost like the second half of Woody Woodpecker's laugh.  D uses it when he laughs mostly, but I've heard him use it as an embellishment on the end of some words too.  It's just a little strange . . . huhuhuhuhuhuhuh!

On the freeway with D in the back seat, we talk about the colors of cars a lot.
Daniel: GiGi!  Look at all the different whites, GiGi!

~> <~

Inviting Daniel to help pick up outside, I was tossing balls in a bucket.  He stood his ground with arms crossed.  "Congratulations, GiGi!  Good job." 

~> <~

One week, the favorite statement was (with one finger raised an arm's-length in front of his face), "I have an idea!"  Nobody can pinpoint the source of that one.

~> <~

Unloading the car--
GiGi:  I'm going to carry your bag with my purse and keys.  Will you hold your cup, please?
Daniel:  (turning two chubby little empty palms up) My hands are full.

Back story:  For 2 years now, the naptime routine with GiGi includes a story and several songs, ending with the old hymn There's Something About That Name.  It starts "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.  There's just something about that name.  Master, Savior, Jesus--like the fragrance after the rain."  Okay, so last week we're singing Baa Baa Black Sheep--
Daniel:  Baa baa black sheep have you any wool?  Yes sir, yes sir.  Three bags full.  Master Savior, one for my dame . . ..

As bossy as His Twoness has become over the past couple of weeks, he still has such a tender heart.
Example One--
We were watching "Davey and the Giant Pickle," the VeggieTales cartoon story of David and Goliath.  When the little tomato Davey flung that stone and toppled his wart-faced green opponent, Daniel started wailing.  He was so sad that the pickle was hurt and fell down!  (Never thought of it that way . . ..  Did you?!)

Example Two--
After trying to take a walk on an August Texas morning, I coaxed D to play in the hose on our shaded patio.  To cool down our core body temps, I sprayed the hose in the air to make it 'rain' and began to sing, "It's raining!  It's pouring!  The old man is snoring.  He went to bed and bumped his head, and didn't get up in the morning."  After a few more rounds, my buddy clouded up.  With big tears and an anguished face, he kept repeating, "GiGi, don't sing he bumped his head."





And finally, words I never ever thought I'd hear from the mouth of The King of the Sleep Fighters.
Daniel (when finished with lunch):  I wanna' take a nap!