Harlem Shake

Twice a week Paul works at a really fun office in Fountain Valley called Rosy Dental.  Yesterday Parker and I met up with Paul after work to help with their version of the Harlem Shake.  Haven't heard of the Harlem Shake?  Neither had I.  Apparently it's the latest big thing on YouTube, but do yourself a favor and don't go looking for other versions- most of them are pretty vulgar. 

Can you spot Paul and Parker in both scenes?  Here's a hint: in the second scene Paul's wearing a king hat thing and a boa. 

A Funny

Yesterday when Parker got out of the bath, he dropped his towel, ran into our bedroom and closed the door behind himself.  As I opened the door I saw him dive under the blankets on the bed. 

Me: "Parrrrker, where arrrrre you?"
Silence
Me: "Parker, are you in the closet?"
Tiny Voice Coming From the Blankets: "Yes."
Me: "Parker, should I look for you behind the curtains?"
Tiny Voice Coming From the Blankets: "Yes."

Parker's Words

Parker learning to talk is the best thing that has ever happened to him, particularly when he learned to say "yes."  I feel like his tantrums are minimal these days because he's able to communicate better.  Before, he loved to say "no!" and would say it even when he meant yes, which was a real headache come mealtime.

"Are you hungry?"
 "No!"
"Do you want a banana?"
"No!"
"Do you want some yogurt?"
"No!"
"Do you want a sandwich?"
"No!"
"Do you want a cookie?"
"No!"

"Do you want to go to Disneyland?"
"No!"

And then if we tried to feed him anything he'd throw a fit because, hello, he'd already made his point very clear.  Why weren't we listening to him?!  After his tantrum he'd then be ready to chow down.  Anyway, it was quite exhausting and in hind sight we probably should not have asked for his opinion when choosing what to feed him.

I feel like he's learning words so quickly now.  There have been several times when he says a word that I don't understand and Paul will have to translate and inform me that he learned that word a couple hours ago and I'm sooo behind the times.

I started making a list today of the words that Parker knows.  I've probably forgotten some, but here's a pretty good sampling:

Car, keys, go, hold on, come on, walk, fast, wet, rain, slide, grass, bye bye, hi, hello, work, dada, mama, dad, mom, mine, my, friend, church, Jesus, amen, shoes, socks, jacket, dark, light, on, off, yes, no, nope, peanut butter, pancakes, cereal, cheese, banana, apple, beans, cookie, water, milk, bowl, fork, Elmo, read, George, Word World, ball, basketball, football, baseball, blocks, bird, owl, pig, dog, duck, frog, lion, honk, beep beep, book, nigh nigh, sun, nose, Kleenex, grandpa, eyes, crash, hot, cold, brrrr, warm, hat, trash, back, away, home, song, Parker, fish, hey, yay, cool, what's that, who's that, where'd it go, poo poo, pee pee, bum bum, hurt, yeah, ouch, picture, hair, push, up, hug, bubbles, please, spin, baby, bag, race, buckle, chair, stuck, all done, all gone, broke.

It's really cute how he pronounces some of these.  For example, pancakes is "bee keys," water is "warr," fish is "woosh," and friend is "wenn."  It's fun to look at this list and see how completely it encompasses his world. 

Perhaps I Should Tackle This Today...

Just looking at this mountain makes me tired.  Ugh.  The last two nights I've dug into Parker's future clothes bins to pull out way-too-big-pajamas because he hasn't had any clean ones.  Ok, it's time. 

Babysitting Swap

We started doing a babysitting swap once a month with two other families that live in our apartment complex.  They each have one baby around Parker's age and they all play pretty well together.  This was our month to watch all the kids and Parker wanted to make sure they felt welcome in our home- hugs all around!

 

Splashing in the Water Feature

Paul and I had a disagreement when we first moved into our apartment about how I wanted to decorate our bedroom.  We compromised and decided that I could do whatever I wanted to the inside of our apartment if Paul could have free rein over our patio area.  Since then he has been busy at work perfecting his putting green.  I think he wants to have a grand reveal once its complete, so I'll just show a small portion.  Parker loooooves the water feature, especially after it has rained. I found out about this love the hard way (Paul was the one outside with Parker taking the pictures), when I discovered soggy footprints all over our apartment. 

 

Newport Boat Parade

One of the blessings of living near the beach: the Christmas boat parade in Newport Beach.  This was incredible and probably my most favorite activity of the Christmas season.  People spend thousands of dollars decorating their boats and then drive them parade-style through the harbor.  Some of the boats had live bands and swing dancers.  We sat in a park area near the end of the route, before the boats turned around.  This was also the choice spot of the booze cruise boats. I wish we had a better camera to document the awesomeness, but these will have to do: