Just a simple morning

As per my last post, most Tuesdays Elliot and I go to school all morning while Erik is at preschool. It is a rare moment that we miss class unless we have tons of errands or in this case sick. Usually I would still run around town with Elliot, but we both got sick at the same time so I decided a day of hanging out at home would be perfect.

I think Elliot finds it "off" to be at home with him and mommy and no Erik. Every Friday he is home all morning with a sitter when I take Erik to mommy & me, but it is a once every couple months occurrence when it is just him and me hanging out at home.

My house is a disaster since I have been sick all weekend and I really wanted to clean up the kitchen so I decided why not mimic school. So we started off our day with a little finger painting. I took out 3 different brushes, some paper and took off his clothes and let him go for it. Total paint time, 15 minutes, then 15 minutes of clean up. Sometimes I wonder if it is worth it.

Of course even without his brother's influence Elliot kept saying "mouth" and guess where the paint went after that, if you guessed "mouth" you sure are smart.

Then because Elliot is really cranky today and I am not feeling well and was having a bad moment, when he asked for popcorn and to watch "mouse" I didn't say no this time. Sometimes it is just good to let it go and give them what they want. Or that is what I tell myself when I feel the guilt that Elliot has now watched one hour of tv today instead of his usual 30 minutes.

Then because I was feeling better and Elliot was throwing tantrum after tantrum I decided that a walk would be a great idea, and with only two of us, why not bring Lovey. Just a walk around the block, but with a toddler and a dog, it takes 20 minutes.

Elliot is an excellent walker. He never lets go, he never pulls at Lovey or gets inpatient and when Lovey walks up the hill to smell he just waits patiently for her. Its very nice to take a walk with Elliot.

Its definitely the start of spring in Southern California and everything is starting to bloom. Also I love that we live next to a street that is lined with palm trees.

Our walk was not without injury and out came the band-aid. I will disclaim that it lasted all of 10 minutes before took it off and complained again that his finger hurts. The one thing I love about 3-year-olds is that you can reason with them and say "if you keep the band-aid on it will protect your finger and not hurt." There really is no way to get that point across to a one-year-old whose mind is made up.