Elias has started telling jokes. They're very much insider jokes, consisting of a question then affirmation of something blatantly untrue. Now that I think of it, that's very much akin to some of my jokes
("How much was the offer? But Aova is worth a kaJILLion dollars!") His first was:
- Elias: "I go outside?" while one of us was still in PJ's--obviously NOT going to happen.
- Me: "Nooo, you're not going outside now." Smiling, but with you-should-know-better tone.
- Elias: "I go outside!" followed by lots of laughter.
He still uses that one to good effect. Sometimes the initial question is serious, and sometimes it's just a lead-in to his punchline. Last week he came up with another when he was eating an apple at Ski Hi orchard with Nanna and I:
- Elias, holding up his apple: "Applesauce?"
- Me: "Nooo, that's not applesauce; it's an apple!" (He knows very well the difference.)
- Elias: "Applesauce!" HaHaHaaHaHaaHa!
Now he'll just come up to you randomly with that spark in his eye and either ask or yell "applesauce" and crack up laughing. I used this to good effect at the photographers' last week, when I just said "applesauce!" whenever I wanted him to laugh. Here's one of the resulting photos.
Although now he is quite expressive and even giggly, Elias seemed rather stoic until he was about a year and a half old. Especially as an infant, he was very reserved, giving the impression that he was just observing everything, to be thoroughly processed and mulled over, and brought to bear at some appropriate time in the future. This came through again last week at the zoo, when for the first time we rode the train. He loves trains, and was so excited, the waiting made worse by the fact that we didn't quite make it on the first train ride, so had to wait the entire cycle first in line for the next round. He fluctuated between eager pointing and frustrated whining. However, once we got on it his face went blank, eyes wide and mouth drooped open, despite any encouragement from the conductor or us. It was like he was so intent on taking it all in, there was no energy to reflect back out--a little black hole of experiential pleasure. Someone else would probably misjudge that he was bored or clueless, but I knew it was just the opposite--Oh, how he loved that train. Right after that he rode the carousel, and had some of that look too, but not like the train. I'll have to make it a point of riding that each time we get the chance.
We survived Halloween. It was fun, yes, but also a test of endurance. It was one of only about 3 days that Elias had ever skipped his nap, despite all attempts. I had basically invited us over to friends' house since they live in a nice neighborhood and have a daughter just a little older than Elias. First we all marched in the neighborhood parade, finished by hot cocoa and homemade cookies. Then we went back to their house and I played with the 4 kids downstairs while E made a nice dinner. Elias was in heaven, playing with their Thomas the Train toys. The last several weeks he's been obsessive about Thomas& Friends (AKA "Percy"), begging constantly for our video and/or books. He didn't want to abandon his new-found Thomas delights for dinner. He screamed, he wailed, he bounced up and down, he went limp. It was his biggest tantrum EVER. We "timed out" in the bathroom to try to muffle the noise, but every time he'd get himself under control we'd go out, he'd ask for trains, I'd say no, and we were right back into tantrum mode. That pretty much went on until it was time to suit up again and try trick-or-treating. Sorry, Paulsens!
A nighttime walk in a strange, decorated neighborhood with hundreds of costumed kids roaming the streets can distract someone even from Thomas. I suspect he didn't really know what people were giving him (he doesn't get much candy), but he certainly enjoyed traipsing around with the gang, trying to keep up with the big kids. The second house we came to was un-manned, with only a bowl of candy on the porch. Elias quite naturally took the candy in his bag he'd gotten from the first house, and started to put it in the bowl--aw, my little Robin Hood. He did get the hang if it, strange as it is, and had a lot of fun. He got tons of complements on his costume--one car packed with teenagers even stopped and all inside oohed and aahhed, and declared him the costume winner of the night. With all the stairs in that neighborhood, and the missed nap, and the crying, we were both pretty tired after a couple blocks, and parted company for home. He slept in an hour later than normal (2, really, considering DST) and we both took very long, deep naps today.
