I took the last week off from work for the purpose of working on a variety of personal projects.
The above is the timelapse from my home office webcam for my last real day of vacation. Hit play to start it. I’m currently experimenting with a fisheye lens so you can see the whole room, although with a bit of distortion. But this way you can see what Alex, Roscoe, and if you don’t blink Amy too, are doing in the room, rather than just seeing a closer view of me at my desk. :-)
It has been a good week. I got a few things done, although of course not as much as I would have liked. I made a decision early in the week not to worry too much about it, and also use the time to just take it slow and relax a bit. So I didn’t push myself. I’m still a bit under the weather and tired… and I’ll probably end up trying to finish a few more things over the weekend even though that is harder when Alex isn’t in school. So I’m not sure I’ll head back to work fully relaxed and rejuvenated, but it was still good to take the week. I should use my vacation and personal days a bit more than I do. I always end up leaving those on the table because I don’t use them.
987 pictures from August. First pass narrowed it to 75. Culling it down to 31 for this post. The last few killed were hard choices as usual.
2014-08-01 00:50 UTC – We start out the month with Amy in a cat hat.
2014-08-02 03:06 UTC – Alex is getting better and better at walking Roscoe.
2014-08-02 19:39 UTC – Roscoe always likes to rest after his walks.
2014-08-04 04:25 UTC – We sometimes put Alex in a cage.
2014-08-04 04:33 UTC – Alex playing with a wooden car by the light of a night light.
2014-08-09 21:31 UTC – Alex will follow his sister to the ends of the earth… or to a science demonstration for kids at my company picnic.
2014-08-09 22:00 UTC – Alex chasing a ball at the company picnic. And yes, the “picnic” was inside. No grass or trees to be seen.
2014-08-09 22:10 UTC – Once Alex was tired of the picnic, we walked a bit in the city. Well, I walked. Alex rode. He is about 45 pounds now, so this usually doesn’t last too long.
2014-08-09 22:40 UTC – When we were done exploring, we hung out in Pioneer Square for awhile until Mommy could swing around with the car and pick us up.
2014-08-09 22:55 UTC – This seagull kept watching us.
2014-08-10 16:51 UTC – One Sunday I accompanied my mom to a church where she was doing the fill in minister thing for the day.
2014-08-10 18:28 UTC – Here she is doing the meet and greet thing after the service.
2014-08-10 19:30 UTC – After the service, time for a day trip to Canada! Observe the grandeur and majesty of the border crossing!
2014-08-10 20:24 UTC – We found a small tourist town to have lunch in.
2014-08-10 20:32 UTC – My mom was wearing this owl. It kept staring at me.
2014-08-10 21:13 UTC – We saw some pretty views along a river.
2014-08-10 21:24 UTC – We saw some train stuff.
2014-08-10 23:18 UTC – Then we went to a park across the channel from the Vancouver airport. (Click to enbiggen the panorama.)
2014-08-10 23:22 UTC – We watched some big planes take off.
2014-08-10 23:28 UTC – And a bunch of little ones too. These were taking off from the channel of course.
2014-08-11 03:09 UTC – Then after dinner, we headed back to the US. Much shoddier and more run down border crossing this time.
2014-08-13 01:46 UTC – Back at home, all summer long, Alex almost never missed a day playing with the hose. He would water the lawn, all the plants and bushes, the cars, himself, and anybody crazy enough to get within range.
2014-08-22 03:50 UTC – Later in the month I took Brandy to a concert.
2014-08-24 18:24 UTC – At school Alex is starting to learn geography.
2014-08-30 01:44 UTC (photo by Brandy) – Then we went to a fair. We went on this slide. Amy went first while Alex and I waited at the top.
2014-08-30 01:44 UTC (photo by Brandy) – Then Alex changed his mind and didn’t want to go. But it was too late. So I held his hand. I was not supposed to do that. Because I essentially ended up dragging him down. And since I was holding onto his hand, he spun onto his side. This was scary and unpleasant. There were tears. But he forgave me a few minutes later.
2014-08-30 02:01 UTC – Amy and Alex went fishing. Eventually Alex caught one of the fish and won a toy car.
2014-08-30 03:14 UTC – After dark, there were lots of lit up spinning things to watch.
2014-08-30 03:26 UTC – Amy won a donut, but let Alex wear it.
2014-08-30 03:53 UTC – Alex had said for months that he did not want a haircut until he could put his hair in his mouth. Now he can, but he has changed his mind. He still does not want a haircut.
2014-08-30 04:50 UTC – At a certain point, Alex was done and just bolted to head back to the car on his own. He was headed the wrong way of course. I caught him and we walked back to the car together. Amy and Brandy joined us awhile later. :-)
Alex’s school had a little event for his birthday today. They do it for all the kids. They do a thing where they put down a candle to represent the sun, then cards with the months around the sun. Then the birthday kid walks around the sun while all the kids all sing a song about the days and months in the year. Each time the birthday kid gets to the month their birthday is in, they stop and the parents show a picture from that age and potentially say a little bit about that age. Afterwords, there is a snack with the birthday kid’s favorite fruit. It was a fun little time.
And it made me find a picture of Alex from each September since he was born. Which was also fun. Here are the six pictures I picked for Alex:
2009-09-25 19:09 UTC – Approximately Age 0 – The first picture I have of Alex with his eyes wide open and paying attention.
2010-09-12 21:04 UTC – Approximately Age 1 – Alex in his birthday hat on his first birthday
2011-09-11 17:20 UTC – Approximately Age 2 – Alex and Amy in the driveway of our new house as we are moving in right as Alex turns two
2012-09-03 02:06 UTC – Approximately Age 3 – Alex at a nearby park with a lake and a beach
2013-09-13 01:56 UTC – Approximately Age 4 – Alex as he opens presents
2014-09-11 21:53 UTC – Approximately Age 5 – Alex plays in a pit of flying balloons
At the moment this is posting… 21:42 UTC (2:42 PM Pacific, 5:42 PM Eastern) Alex is exactly five years old when you take into account the fact a year isn’t an even number of days, leap years, and all that sort of thing. So…
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALEX!
As usual for Alex milestones, a little bit ago I recorded a quick interview with Alex to get his thoughts on turning five. We did it outside this time, so apologies in advance for the bits with wind noise and where it is harder to hear him. But hey, it was a change of pace from the indoor ones. And bonus Roscoe!
OK, now, I know only a few close relatives probably bothered watching that, but that is OK, that is who it is for mainly.
So, I last posted one of these when Alex turned 4.5, and of course there was one when he turned 4. What is different since then?
Alex still isn’t so sure about being older, and still plans on pretending to be a year younger than he really is (see interview above). But he is less worried about this than a year ago. He REALLY didn’t want to turn four.
He has significantly broadened his taste in in video games, both on the iPad and on the computer. Trainz variants and Portal are probably still at the top of the stack, but he plays LOTS of different things now. Some that are actually kid’s games, others which are clearly aimed at a much older demographic, but Alex doesn’t mind and just figures out the game anyway. He only really gets stuck when you have to READ instructions. Then he asks me to help read it. Then he listens VERY carefully, then remembers and applies it, and usually doesn’t need me to read whatever it was again. He just moves on and plays the game.
The trend I called out six months ago for broadening taste in TV shows is also continuing. It generally is still one or two shows at a time though. He’ll watch and watch and watch and memorize to the point he can recite the lines along with the characters. Then finally, after he has completely absorbed every available episode of a show, he’ll find a new show to do that with. Although he sometimes does revisit old favorites. One of the new ones that happened in the last six months is Transformers. He watched Transformers Prime, and it was OK for a bit, but then there was Transformers Rescuebots, which he loved and was the primary focus for about a month. Maybe two.
Speaking of which, his play with physical toys is broadening too. Trains are of course still the number one favorite. But cars are increasingly in favor to a degree they haven’t been in a couple of years. Matchbox and Hotwheels cars and the playlets associated with them. And, during the Rescuebot craze, both trains and cars began to regularly transform and would sometimes walk and talk like robots. The occasional stuffed animal gets attention. And he has on more than a few occasions been playing with and building things with Lego. And of course, during the warm months, he returned to the old favorite… the hose. There are all kinds of fun things you can do with hoses.
He still likes his new school. At least we don’t have the sort of complaints and begging to stay home like we did at the previous school. Now, he’d still rather be at home, but he rarely protests going once it is clear that is what is going to happen, and he will sometimes share and talk about things he is doing or has learned at school. This is MUCH better than the last place. Montessori is working well for Alex. We hope to keep him in Montessori programs as long as we can. Since they are very flexible and adaptable to the child’s own pace, as long as we do that, we won’t worry too much about the fact that Alex misses the age cutoff to be in a higher grade by 12 days. (Even though he is academically ahead, socially he is still not where his teachers would like, so not having to worry about that sort of thing is good.)
When we walk the dog these days, more times than not (as in the interview above) Alex is actually walking the dog himself, holding the leash and doing the guiding. I usually only take over when there is another dog nearby, if we are walking near heavier traffic than usual, or once Alex gets tired and doesn’t want to any more. Alex and Roscoe really are best buddies. They have their occasional disputes, but there is clearly a strong bond there.
Alex still is very reluctant to ride his bike. I usually have to bribe him, and then only get a few minutes out of him. He doesn’t have the confidence yet. Lately though, when I ask about riding bikes though, what he wants is for ME to ride my bike while he chases me on foot. OK, I guess that is another way to get exercise.
Alex is putting himself to sleep when he gets tired! Notice I didn’t say “to bed”. Sleeping in his own bed in his own room is very rare. But, when he gets tired, he will either tell one of us he is ready to go up to our bed, with us, and cuddle up to go to sleep, or he will just gather pillows, blankets, etc wherever he happens to be and curl up and go to sleep. Now, this is often still later than maybe it should be, but bedtimes aren’t really a thing in our house for anybody. The day is over when we are tired and want to sleep.
After school he will sometimes lobby for a trip to “MikelDonalds” for either a Happy Meal or a McFlurry. Denny’s is another OK restaurant as far as he is concerned. Anywhere else, and he’d usually rather stay home.
He is constantly working on his negotiating skills. Whenever we want to do something that he doesn’t want to do, or just not the thing that he wants to do, he will present counter offers, trying to get us to move toward his position. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. But he is trying to work in his angle all the time.
On our iDevices, he will now bring me the device, already to the point where he has picked a new game he wants to buy and it is asking for my password. “Buy this daddy.” But he has tried to move beyond this. From a Facebook post Amy based recounting something she witnessed: ‘”Daddy,” Alex says hiding the Samuel‘s iPad, “I won’t buy any levels, but will you tell me your password to buy stuff so I can remember it forever??? I promise I won’t buy any levels, but please will you tell me your password? Deal?”‘ That did not work. He has an allowance on his own iPad though, so the plan is to make the password on that one into one he actually knows and can use whenever. It just only has a certain amount per month allowed, so he can’t go beyond that. :-)
He can dress himself! That is not to say that he DOES dress himself usually. But he can when he wants to. If he is lobbying to do something outside that he really wants to do for instance, and we are telling him that despite what he thinks, he needs to actually be fully clothed to do that, he will sometimes run off to his room and come back downstairs a few minutes later. Fully dressed. Sometimes with shoes on too. Now, sometimes the pants or shirt are on backwards, but hey, whatever, that’s cool. Of course, when he DOESN’T want to go out, there is none of this, and it is a fight to get him dressed, and it is a huge game to make it take as long as possible. But hey, that’s just how it goes.
He still sometimes pretends to be a dog, but not as much as he used to.
He is getting pretty good at writing his name and drawing people. And trains.
He almost knows his address. Not quite. But close. He does know the street. But he keeps insisting the house number is the passcode on his iPad. It isn’t.
When we go on walks, he collects leaves for Mommy, sticks for Amy, and rocks for me.
OK, the top of my head is empty, although I am sure there are plenty of other things that could be mentioned.
1285 pictures from July. First pass narrowed it to 76. Then culled down to 31 for this post…
2014-07-05 04:50 UTC – Grandma Ruth and Alex waiting for fireworks.
2014-07-05 05:04 UTC – And then the fireworks began!
2014-07-05 05:13 UTC – I took lots of pictures of fireworks, but two will suffice here.
2014-07-05 05:26 UTC – After the fireworks the people across the pond start leaving under the light of a cloudy moon.
2014-07-07 18:27 UTC – One of the neighbors dogs, who always barks back and forth with Roscoe through our back fence, got loose. We saw it walking by and called it. It came running, straight to our door, to bark at Roscoe through the door. Roscoe excitedly barked back. The neighbor dog wanted to come over for a visit! We did not let it in. We took it back to its own house instead. They were both disappointed.
2014-07-11 22:47 UTC – Alex’s first eye exam. Doesn’t need glasses yet… but maybe next year!
2014-07-12 16:36 UTC – See the story above. Alex did not forget. Later when we were out at a local mall, he fished the quarter out of his pocket, and headed over to a little train ride that goes back and forth for a minute when you put in a quarter. But it was out of order, so he asked me to keep the quarter for him. But he very much remembered the quarter he had earned, he knew where he had kept it safe, and he knew what he wanted to use it for.
2014-07-16 04:53 UTC – Beating the heat with a fan
2014-07-19 18:33 UTC – Roscoe was very excited that Uncle David was visiting, but jumping on him to get attention was not encouraged, and he wasn’t getting attention just standing there, so Roscoe got up on the couch where Uncle David could reach better to get a good welcome.
2014-07-19 19:51 UTC – Aunt Ann and Uncle David talk to my mom over lunch.
2014-07-19 19:52 UTC – My mom explains something to Seth and Jinn
2014-07-10 21:17 UTC – Aunt Ann and Uncle David in the after lunch picture taking session
2014-07-20 00:20 UTC – Sometimes snuggles involve licks. A few seconds later Alex licked him back.
2014-07-21 20:32 UTC – Then Papa Bill and Grandma Cathy visited. We took a ride on the light rail to the airport!
2014-07-22 21:01 UTC – Since there was going to be a big Minter family get together, this meant it was time to pass on a family tradition. This is Lucy Lumphead, as she was when we received her shortly after Alex was born. (Click the pic to make it big enough to read the note.)
2014-07-22 21:06 UTC – And here is Lucy Lumphead as we passed her along to Cousin Maya’s family. Brandy made the new costume. I wrote the new note. This doll has been being passed around in the family every few years for the last 74 years. (Click the pic to make it big enough to read the note.)
2014-07-22 23:08 UTC – My dad and his sisters Diane and Susan, all together at the same time for the first time in years.
2014-07-22 23:16 UTC – Cathy at a quiet moment during the get together.
2014-07-22 23:41 UTC – Alex plays tetherball while Cousin Ella runs by.
2014-07-22 23:48 UTC – Cousin Luca holds Kai, the youngest member of the clan.
2014-07-23 01:35 UTC – Cathy with Kai
2014-07-23 01:37 UTC – Amy drew an octopus.
2014-07-23 01:38 UTC – Kai plays the piano too.
2014-07-23 01:45 UTC – Amy, look how high I can jump!
2014-07-23 02:18 UTC – At one point, Alex asked me if we could take a walk. Then he whispered and asked me if I could please ask his cousins Mia and Ella if they would come with us. Ella thought this was a great idea, and asked permission to take us to the playground at their school. So Mia and Ella took us to the playground. Seconds later Alex and Ella were doing this.
2014-07-23 02:24 UTC – Mia and Ella are Alex’s favorite cousins. Especially Ella. We visit rarely, but Alex really enjoys spending time with them when he can.
2014-07-23 02:39 UTC – Ella throws sand while the others watch. Of course within moments, they were all throwing sand.
2014-07-23 02:52 UTC – The girls were amused because when it was time to walk home, Alex gathered a load of sand to carry home in his shirt. Halfway back, he dumped the sand and with their help transferred it all to his shoes, where it was easier to carry home.
2014-07-23 18:35 UTC – Roscoe angles for some attention from Cathy
2014-07-23 18:36 UTC – Posing for a quick photo before Papa Bill and Grandma Cathy go home.
2014-07-23 18:37 UTC – One more with just the three generations of Minter men.
30 pictures selected out of 481 for the month. It was a slow month, with no big “events”, but the final narrowing was still hard!
2014-06-01 02:31 – Mom singing with her church choir.
2014-06-02 15:51 – Mornings are hard. Someone really doesn’t want to wake up for school, and often doesn’t until we are already there.
2014-06-03 02:44 (previously posted)- If June had a theme, it was probably home improvement. It started small, with me changing the battery in a smoke detector after it had been beeping for YEARS.
2014-06-06 02:22 – At the end of year ceremony at Alex’s school, Alex was not thrilled about standing up front to sing.
2014-06-06 02:28 – But he would pose for a picture with his teacher.
2014-06-06 02:28 – Picture taking patience was exhausted when it was time for the picture with the assistant teacher though, so time for a duck face!
2014-06-06 04:28 – This thing is a microphone, right? The school presentation is over, NOW I can sing!
2014-06-07 18:09 – A typical pose with Roscoe and Alex together while Alex builds worlds and trains on the iPad.
2014-06-07 19:15 – Joining the new fridge from January, the new oven/microwave combo is finally complete. Brandy has been very excited because it is an INDUCTION stovetop, and the Microwave also has a convection oven mode. And they are shiny.
2014-06-08 20:29 – Sometimes, when the weather is agreeable, Alex rides his wagon to and from school instead of taking the car.
2014-06-09 01:56 – Alex “reading” a Magic School Bus book in the car.
2014-06-10 00:41 – The weather has finally warmed up enough to play in the sprinkler! When properly bundled up of course.
2014-06-10 05:07 – Playing with Daddy’s glasses
2014-06-12 20:27 – I moved to a new desk at work. It has a view.
2014-06-13 02:54 – Next home improvement thing. Brandy put up a ceiling pot holder thingy. These were just the starter pots. It is much more heavily loaded now.
2014-06-14 01:18 – Alex and I sat outside and watched while my car windshield was replaced after a flying rock cracked it. (I’ve been meaning to post a timelapse of the repair, but haven’t gotten around to it.) The beginning was exciting, but toward the end Alex was getting bored and sleepy.
2014-06-16 05:48 – OK, you can’t tell from the picture, but this is me working on the next home improvement project. The projector we used as our primary TV died, and this is me up on a chair getting the new replacement projector all set up.
2014-06-19 21:50 – Amy and Alex hanging out on a sunny day
2014-06-19 21:5? (Photo by Amy) – Amy takes advantage of the moment to grab a quick Alex portrait.
2014-06-23 01:11 – How do we play with the dog Alex? Well, obviously, put a broom on him, then LIMBO!
2014-06-23 03:18 – Alex asked for a rainbow cake, so Brandy made one.
2014-06-23 05:17 (Photo by Alex) – Sometimes Alex takes my phone to take his own pictures. He took this portrait of Roscoe. I chose not to include the pictures he took of the floor, the ceiling, or his foot.
2014-06-25 22:38 – Another home improvement pic. No, not the coffeemakers. No, not the lazy susan under them, although that is new too. I neglected to get a really good picture of it, but the tiled backsplash on the wall is all new. Brandy put it in by hand over the course of a few days, replacing the plain wall that was there before.
2014-06-27 15:56 (Photo by Amy) – Selfie by Amy
2014-06-28 06:40 – Alex can draw people now!
2014-06-28 06:47 – And not just ANY people. Alex is very clear… this… is… BATMAN.
2014-06-28 06:51 – He is getting pretty darn good at writing his name too!
2014-06-29 02:49 – Making new train levels again, this time on my iMac. He starts from scratch and builds the track, adds trains, and then builds the landscape with mountains and lakes and buildings and all. His software of choice is all from the Trainz family.
2014-06-29 23:31 – For the first time in forever, Roscoe gets a BATH. (Alex insists it was a SHOWER though, since we used the hose and didn’t actually put him in the tub.)
2014-06-30 07:32 – Of course, at the end of each day, it is always nice to cuddle and fall asleep.
I think this may well be the first time since he was in a crib. Usually he sleeps with us. Even if we put him in his bed, he generally wakes up and joins us partway through the night. Last night he fell asleep on the couch, I put him in his own bed, and he was still there sound asleep when it was time to wake him for school in the morning.
I kinda missed him though. There is only so long little boys will cuddle with their daddies, and I’m in no hurry what so ever to have those days end. :-)
April was difficult. Started out with 979 pictures for the month. Narrowed down to 77 in the first pass through looking for pictures worth posting. Then had to narrow it down to 30 (one per day) for this post. The last cull was tough! Anyway, here goes…
2014-04-02 02:01 – Alex riding his bike, for real!
2014-04-06 21:58 – Goggle selfie
2014-04-12 07:39 – Roscoe cuddles up to sleep
2014-04-19 21:57 – Amy (and Alex) at the Space Needle
2014-04-19 21:58 – Alex conspiring with Cousin Lev
2014-04-19 22:58 – Still conspiring, now under Alex’s new umbrella, under watchful adult eyes
