It's That Time, Part II

As I promised yesterday, I'm brining you a list of Mason's favorite times of day:


When We Leave -- My bambino loves to leave the house. Before he's figured out where we're going (because it could be somewhere he does not like) he jumps at any chance to leave. He enjoys the whole process. When he gets wind of preparations to leave the house he'll walk over to the stairs and sit on the first step and start saying, "Shoes! Shoes!" This -- as you may have guessed means -- "Put on my shoes because I want to go, too." When his shoes are on he starts queueing at the door. If he thinks we're leaving out the front door he'll go stand (sometimes with a treasured guy in hand or a sippy cup) at the door. If he thinks we're leaving out the back he'll wander to that door. Then he waits till the rest of us are ready.

When the Timer Beeps -- Oven, kitchen timer, microwave... if there's a beep and Mason hears it he will come running. He usually thinks that a beep means he's about to eat. He even reaches for the beeping appliance and says, "Done, done."

The Big Hug -- After his nap Mason fancies being picked up by his daddy getting hugged. He lays down his head on Steve's shoulder, tucks his hands between his stomach and Steve's chest, then just lets out a big sigh of relief as he snuggles off his sleepiness. When dad isn't home he settles for mommy -- but certainly doesn't delight in it nearly as much.

Stories and Songs -- I do read to both my boys. About half the time I read to them together. But the other half of the time Steve takes one and I take the other. (Usually both of them convince me to spend a little time in each room.) When I'm with Mason he's fond of sitting on the big bed in his room (not in his crib) and listening to a story or two. Then he wants me to proceed with the singing part. I am an awful singer, but he requests me -- through hand gestures -- to sing his favorites: Itsty Bitsy Spider, Old MacDonald (with pinching crustaceans), Head-Shoulders-Knees, If you're happy and you know it, and Twinkle-Twinkle.

Well I think those are the favorites. But one UN favorite is pretty funny. You know that THX thing on the front of every movie? It's usually some fancy auditory range that is supposed to showcase the capabilities of THX... anyway, it makes Mason cry in terror. Every single variation. Cries.