What’s in a name?

Connor and Josephine have shown a true affinity for running in the grass barefoot and generally just playing outside.  They love rides in the golf cart, petting dogs and chasing butterflies which are plentiful on the golf course.  Connor and Josie also love sweets and we’re having some intersecting battles with Nita’s love of a good deal and the selective memory of toddlers.  For example, right after Easter Nita found confetti eggs and hollow plastic eggs for ridiculous prices.  She intended to put them in the Easter tub for next year.  Connor and Josie found them, wanted to open them and then looked in horror when there were no jelly beans inside.  So the “Daddy, can I have one jelly bean please, just ONE jelly bean” dance started.  Then Josie pipes up with “Jahy Bean Peace.”  I know I should be stronger, but come on! 

So with Easter behind us, mostly, the kids are really enjoying spring.  The weather has been fun and we’re starting to plan our run up to the beach house.  As I mentioned before, the butterflies are in full force and I’ve been taking the kids around in the golf cart to see and count them and even chase a couple.  Josie is getting very vocal and even helped me record a little video greeting (more on that later).  By the way, Josie has turned “I want it” into a single word. It’s pretty cute, but we’ll have to break that one.  Our moms have bought the kids a ton of books and are kind of competing on what the kids will become interested in.  I don’t think they are doing it on purpose, rather they are leaning on things they know and both are having a fun effect.  Nita’s mom is a retired teacher and used to teach a segment on dinosaurs.  So we have more dinosaur figurines, stuffed animals, books, etc. than you can imagine.  So the other day, Connor comes into my office and says, “Daddy can I see a dinosaur.”  Sure, why not, so for some reason I think Godzilla is a good search term. 

What the (blank) did I just start?  Now Connor has seen about 50 YouTube clips of original and some REALLY poorly made joke (at least I hope they were joke) Godzilla movies and videos.  He knows a lot of the names now and is constantly asking to see a Godzilla clip.  Then he gets up, stomps in slow motion and swings an invisible tail to knock over his trains and blocks.  Sometimes I have to fight him where I’m Godzilla and he’s Anguirus which is a weird version of an (ready for this) Ankylosaurus.  In any case, he’s a spikey back Stegosauraus looking thing with a ball for a tail and he walks on all fours.  So we duke it out. Sometimes he’s Godzilla and I have to be King Ghidrah  complete with three dragon heads who breathes fire.  On a side note for those who have seen How to train your dragon, he did make the distinction that toothless has one head, the “other” dragon has two heads and Ghidrah has three heads, so I guess at least this Godzilla phase is educational. Finally and leading into my mom’s section is Mothra.  He loves Mothra because basically he’s like a monster butterfly.

As you might have inferred at this point my mother’s contribution is bugs. She’s been buying Connor bug books and teaching him about all the different varieties.  Josie and Connor are disturbingly unafraid of any and all bugs.  I hope this doesn’t (bad pun ahead) sting us in the near future.  If you remember from last week’s adventure, Connor was the one who had all the girls screaming (except Josie) because he was holding a grasshopper he’d found under a table. 

 In any case, a couple of days ago I heard my kids have a full conversation with each other.  Now I’ve heard them talking at the table while we’re getting dinner or breakfast ready.  Usually it’s Connor teaching Josie words and his excitement when she can repeat a word he prompts.  But this time Josie (the human shadow) walked over while Connor was reading a bug book.  He didn’t want to visit or share his book and said, “Go tell momma I’m reading a book on bugs.”  Josie (to my surprise) said, “I’ll be good Connor” (which sounds a lot like “Conneh”). He said, “No Josie, go tell momma.”  Josie then continued to play with him and said, “Watch a show for one minute.”  Connor agreed this was a good plan and came running over with book in hand.  “Momma,” he said, “Can we watch a show for just ONE minute?” 

Yesterday was my 8^th wedding anniversary.  Nita and I planned a few things but as a surprise I posted a little video of the kids saying “Happy Anniversary” to Nita.  It was pretty fun and the kids were awesome.  The day of I had to go to an analyst event at a downtown hotel.  Since it was middle of the day, I worked from home in the morning and took Nita and the kids to the club for lunch.  We have a nice little soup and salad buffet with an entrée.  Anyway, we’re there eating and when Connor is done he wants to go run around outside and chase butterflies.  So we’re out there and the driving range is open.  By the way, Connor also has equated this Godzilla phase with monsters and ghosts.  And he thinks we should be prepared to beat them up.  So in addition to my golf clubs, sometimes we carry a fisher price hockey stick or a big barreled nerf-like bat with us in case we see such a monster or ghost.  Okay, you’re caught up.  So after lunch we go to the range and he starts putting the balls on the tees.  Now he’s lined up about six balls and decides he wants to hit them.  Have my dreams just come true?

Okay, I have REALLY tried to surround him with items that will hopefully pique his interest, but have never pushed.  We’ve hit the baseball on his swing away, and hit a hockey puck, swung a golf club, shot a few baskets and have thrown the baseball and football, but whenever he wanted to go to something else, we moved on.  This time he wanted me to go back to the cart and get him a golf club.  When we got to the cart, he noticed his bat and decided it was his bat that he wanted.  So here he goes, knocking the ball down the range, and setting up a new one…with a bat.  He did it over and over and over.  The guys on the range were just hooting and started calling him Bam Bam!  That was awesome and not even because it matches the whole dinosaur theme.  In fact, that is a nickname that could stick and it would be worth keeping.  So as more people showed up for the noon game, we had to go.  But it wasn’t because Bam Bam wanted to leave, oh quite the opposite.  He begged me to let him keep hitting.  And he wants me to take him back very soon.  As Josie watched brother hit of course she had to do it as well.  So there I was with a wedge that was choked down to a belly putter for her and we were hitting balls off the tee as well.  Anyway, when it was time to go, we hopped in the cart and got a few high fives from the noon group.  Some of whom called out, “See you soon Bam Bam!”  I loved it.  What a great anniversary present.  My two kids showing interest in the game I love (and despise depending on what hole I’m on and what my score is). J  And to my lovely wife, Happy Anniversary honey, I love you and thanks for 8 wonderful years and two beautiful kids.

Quick addendum:  Nita just called me before this post and told me that Connor’s preschool teacher mentioned that Connor held a butterfly on his finger for over ten minutes today.  She said they were calling him the “butterfly whisperer.”  Personally I think Bam Bam is cooler, but what’s in a name?