Hilarious Wm

Before I forget, I have to get down a few funny Will-isms:

1. While playing in his room Friday, Wm says to me, "hang on, we need some tunage," and went and flipped on his radio.
2. Then, just now, Wm turned on his radio and we heard Delilah reading a letter and Wm, recognizing her voice, says, "I listen to Delilah on my radio all the time."
Note: Wm listens to easy listening/soft rock while falling asleep each night - prime Delilah time.
3. Unfortunately, Wm has weirdly spiked a fever so I am staying home with him tomorrow.  Well, yesterday after dinner he started crying and said that he was freezing and his body hurt.  So we allowed him some extra "screen time" and told him he could lay down on the couch and watch TV for a bit and rest.  Wm hasn't watched TV in months, choosing to use his "screen minutes" on Lego Star Wars or Batman on the Xbox instead.  So he watches TV for about 20 minutes and then says, "OK, I've had enough TV - I think my brain is getting rotten."  (This comes from me telling him - ad nauseum - that TV will rot his brain.)

Kid Rock

After getting ready for this weekend's hike, I thought Wm was looking particularly hard core, so I got some awesome shots of him.

My favorite.

Unfortunately, while I seem to have pinpointed the cause of Steve's eczema (still MUCH improved!), Wm's remains a mystery.  And now that winter is coming, it's roaring back to life with a vengeance.  I made up a batch of super special healing eczema lotion with calendula, vitamin E, and tea tree oil, so we'll see if that helps.  If not, I may be forced to dig deeper into my arsenal.  Poor Willie is getting mighty itchy.  And just look how cute he is:

Goin' my way?

In other news, I have decided to get myself in shape to run a 10k.  I have survived Week 1 of the training schedule, so I'm on to Week 2!  I am NOT a runner, so it's not easy for me at all - and 10k sounds like a looooooong way.  But I have a cool app that tells me exactly what to do (it will bing into my headphones while I listen to my audiobook to tell me what I should be doing when) and it makes it easier.  This didn't stop me from almost puking on Day 1.  But I kept it down and persevered!  I'm trying to talk Lord LameHip into joining me!  Wm, as would be expected, shows zero interest.  

Werewolf Bat Mitzvah...Spooky Scary!

TRICK OR TREAT!!!

                                           Fat Man & Little Boy:  Plans were seriously discussed

     

Work began...   

                                                             The BIG NIGHT! Jengo Fett.

                                                            Jango Fett sans helmet

                                             Jano Fett with bear ears that Wm made at school

Wm just got back from trick or treating.  He is now stuffed with candy and in a somewhat glazed and gleeful haze.  He had a GREAT time going from house to house.  With one hiccup: there was one house that had gone all out with strobe light, spooky music, the whole nine.  Well, when the door opened a a huge dude dressed as a demon emerged, Wm's eyes filled with tears and he yelled, "CAN YOU JUST STOP THAT, PLEASE?!?!"  The guy felt horrible and immediately turned off all the effects, but Wm insisted that he wouldn't go to anymore white houses.  This didn't stop him from taking candy from the demon before running off.  That's m'boy.  Our awesome neighbors always make Wm his own giant bag of candy - and this year they included a Lego toy for him to build.  He is laying on the floor going at it right now.  Wm just looked up at me and goes, "is Steve still outside?"  I go, "Uhhh, your dad?  Yeah, he's out there."  Wm says, "OK," and goes back to building.  I guess now that he's survived the Demon House, he feels he is old enough to call us by our given names.

Mountain Man

We just got back from a great hiking trip to Clifton Gorge - Wm had the time of his life!  In fact, he says he wants to hike every weekend.  This was the first time Wm has actually not complained about being tired or wanting to leave; he was a trooper.  We went on our longest hike ever!  Of course, we had to refuel after that, so we went to Clifton Mill for lunch afterwards.  That was the lowpoint of the trip...the years have not been kind to Clifton Mill.  The food was yuck, the staff was rude, and the bathrooms get a "poor" rating. Definitely won't be back there.  But we have already promised Wm another hiking trip next weekend!  There was a dead skunk on the path and Wm was totally enthralled with skunk stories.  Anything stinky or gross is always super entertaining.

Wm has the whole sign in his hands...

Wm and Mommy hiking

Wm and Daddy hiking

Lookout shot

Peachy

I have an awesome video of Wm that I wanted to post, but it keeps giving me errors when I try to upload it to YouTube!  It's a great one - Steve is making some weird humming noise that causes Wm to laugh so hard he practically chokes.  I will continue the YouTube quest!

Wm has started to ask why he and I have "peachy" skin and Daddy has "brown" skin.  He will tell anyone who sits still long enough that "even though me and Mommy are peachy, my Daddy is brown."  I am thinking that people's first thought is, "THAT kid is biracial?"  Wm's blond hair and blue eyes are very Aryan-esque.  Second, Steve is going to surprise a lot of people the first time he meets them.  "Oh!  YOU'RE Wm's dad?  I thought you were...he said you were br-...never mind."  Should be good and awkward for Steve.

Speaking of Steve - good news in Hip Watch 2010!  After being told by 3 doctors that he needed surgery, he met with the surgeon for his pre-surgical consultation this morning only to be told he does NOT need surgery!  The surgeon said that he thinks physical therapy can solve the problem.  And that Steve needs to strengthen his core and improve his posture.  So, diagnosis: Steve is schlumpy and gelatinous.  I have been telling him this for months. Where's my $500? 

Super Genius!

I realize I am biased...but I believe Wm to be a super genius.  Steve works all weekend, so I was thinking of ways Wm and I could entertain ourselves.  I decided to take him to Barnes & Noble to get a book.  He picked out an awesome Star Wars pop-up (Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader pop out of the last page with light sabers that actually LIGHT UP!)  Well, next door to the bookstore is Target.  So I decide to be Awesome Mom and take him over there to browse Lego stuff (my ulterior motive was also that I was being Awesome Wife and getting Steve some much needed fingerless gloves for his freaky eczema hands).  Of course, Wm found a Star Wars Lego set he wanted.  Since it was only $10 I decided it would keep him occupied while I cooked lunch.  Well, we get the thing home, open it up, discover it has 97 pieces, and I flaked.  I looked at the instructions (all picture, no words...it was like Cory Kryptonite) and just said, "sorry, dude, this is going to have to wait until Dad gets home...I have NO idea how to put this together."  Wm asked if he could try to do it himself.  I told him he could try as long as he didn't lose pieces or mix things up - and off I went.  I return to tell Wm that lunch is ready to discover Captain Super Genius is attaching the 97th piece to the Droid Speeder. HE DID IT ALL HIMSELF!!!!!!!  Yes.  That's right.  I have given birth to a Suuuuuuper Geniuuuuuuuus.



Right now, said Super Genius is upstairs trying to make me believe he is napping while I can clearly hear him playing with his droids under his covers.  So, perhaps, he's not as smart as he thinks he is.

Rip Van Winkle

Things are definitely looking up in the Life and Times of William.  He had a "Five Awesome" day at school today (even had a good day yesterday though Alex wasn't at school!)  AND, I think I have solved the nighttime mystery.  As you may, or may not, know Wm is horribly afraid of thunderstorms.  Apparently, he was afraid he thunder at night (it could be a plane overhead, a car door closing outside, etc) and then would freak out and wake up in a panic. So, we told him that we PROMISE if there is a thunderstorm, in that ONE instance, he will be allowed to sleep in our bed.  But if there is no thunderstorm, he has to have good sleeps in his own bed.  This has worked like a charm!  The whole family has had two wonderful nights' sleep in a row!  We show Wm the weather radar before bed so he can verify it is stormless - and then he sleeps perfectly.

Steve works this weekend, so Wm and I will be on our own.  I told Wm that we can do something fun and suggested the zoo or COSI.  Wm immediately screamed "LEGO STORE!"  I told him we were just there and I'm not driving to Easton again.  So he thinks for a minute and then screams, "TARGET LEGO AREA!!!!!"  He is obsessed.

But the nice part of Steve working all weekend is that he was off today and we got to go out and have a super nice lunch together at Cap City.  I'm sure, however, that the lunch will seem very far away (and totally not worth it) while I languish in the Lego isle of Target on Saturday solo.

WonderWeekend

Willie the WonderKid has had a very exciting weekend so far!  A failed bedtime experiment on Friday night led to a very sleepy Wm on Saturday.  But that didn't stop him from having a GREAT visit with Grandma and Papa.  Including a trip to Jeni's for ice cream!!  Wm, once again, was up and down all night last night (leading to a VERY grumpy Mom and Dad), but, again, seemed un-bothered by this.  Mimi and Guy came over to watch Wm while Mommy and Daddy went for a hike at Highbanks.  Unfortunately, Steve had 2 donut holes and a coffee for breakfast, so got all shaky during the hike and had to sit down on a bench for a while to pull it together.  We stopped on the way home and grabbed some food so that Steve wouldn't collapse.  Wm is currently sleeping, but we are already plotting what to do with him when he wakes up to take advantage of the super sunny, warm day!

At dinner Friday night, I explained to Wm what a knock knock joke was and then go, "Hey, Wm, knock knock!"  He answers: "Who's there?"  I say: "Boo."  He says, "Boo who?"  I respond: "Don't cry, it's only Mommy!"  He goes, "No, Mommy, I was saying boo WHO, not crying like boo HOO."  So then I was all, "I know, Wm...see, that's the joke - it's like a play on words, sort of like..."  Wm interrupts: "Hmph.  I wasn't crying. It's stupid."  But Mimi's bunny fart joke was a BIG hit. Note to self: Wm is a fan of fart jokes.

Another successful homemade product!!  This morning I made lip gloss; both tinted (for moi) and untinted (mostly for moi, but also for Steve).  It turned out GREAT and was incredibly easy!!!  I am also holding out hope that I may have perfected a deodorant recipe.  I tested it on the hike and I am stink-free.  Now I just have to keep wearing it for a couple weeks to see if it irritates my skin at all.  If it doesn't, I am declaring victory!!!

A Good Week!

Miracle of miracles!  Wm had an ENTIRE good week at school!!!  Even Meanie McNutt has said that Wm was great at school all week.  Amazing.  Another teacher mentioned that Wm may be "in mourning" for the loss of his friendship with BFF Anthony (who went to kindergarten in August).  She said that adults tend to underestimate the importance of friendships for preschoolers.  I started thinking about when Wm started acting out at school and it seemed to coincide almost exactly with Anthony's departure.  And now that he's had this good week, I have noticed a theme.  Alex.  Wm has made a new BFF at school, Alex, who shares his love of Star Wars and Legos.  When we got to school today, Alex yelled "WILLIAM!" ran over, grabbed Wm's fat little cheeks and planted a kiss on him.  Alex smiled hugely and said, "I have wanted to do that for a long time."  Cutest thing ever.

As a special treat for good behavior Steve and I are suffering through a trip to the Lego store at Easton (worst parental torture ever).

Spooky House

Mimi brought over a candy Halloween spooky house kit (reminiscent of the better known Christmas gingerbread house...but spooky).  Of course, this was a BIG hit with Wm (and with Daddy).  Wm wanted it to look just like the picture on the box and worked hard to make it so.

                   

              The finished product

In other news, I am cautiously optimistic that I have cured Steve's eczema!  After his hands looked like they had been dipped in acid, I decided to undertake an extensive Search for the Cure on The Interwebs. I knew eczema was typically related to allergies, but couldn't figure out what was causing Steve's.  Lo and behold, I happened upon an awesome site that detailed an allergy to "fragrance" (i.e., chemically man-made stuff that smells nice).   Fragrance is in EVERYTHING.  Even "sensitive skin" products: shampoo, conditioner, lotion, soap, laundry detergent, deodorant, etc.  The super duper natural kinds have a super duper price tag to match.  So I have undertaken to making homemade products for Eczema & Son.  Though I do buy Dr. Bronner's baby mild soap because I am scared to work with lye.  The best and easiest product is the lotion I make - recipe found here - though I do sub coconut oil for the olive oil because it's extra healing. The natural lotion I had been buying for Wm and Steve was $15.  To make an equivalent amount of that lotion at home is less than $1.  Yeah.  Boom goes the dynamite.  

After only 3 days on Dr. Cory, Medicine Woman's completely fragrance-free plan, the results are staggering!  Steve's freaky Toxic Avenger hands are nearly 100% healed!!!  He was not pleased about having to take his own little soap in to work or to wash his hair with baking soda...but it's totally worth it.  I have become a Fragrance Nazi.  

Facebook Sucks

Since Facebook has eliminated Wm's account, I am forced back into blogging.  It was so handy to write up a quick howdy do when Wm did something interesting - now I will have to try and remember it all again.  Oh, well, I always thought Facebook was the devil anyway.  So I guess I'm livin' my values now, man.  You can check back here for Wm updates, pictures, and goings on.  Because...seriously...how can anyone live without constant Wm updates?