100!

For about the last 2 months, Eddie has been working on counting. I mean that he has been interested in counting and asking what comes after the last number that he knows. It's been fun. In Sept. he counted all the way to 40 with help and that was when he started to learn how numbers progress.

Something in him clicked in the last little bit and last night he counted all the way to 100 without any assistance. Then today, he was moving onto the 'hundreds' and after 900, I started him on 1000. Did someone help him with all this unbeknownest to us?

In not so fun news, I think he's got a kid version of seasonal affective disorder, or whatever it's called. He's been a PITA lately, following us around like the puppy he pretends to be. I actually stepped on him a couple times today because he was so close to me. Cookie reminded me tonight that last year he went through a similar phase in which he talked a lot about it being dark early in the night. And was very uneasy and out of character for a while. I don't remember when it resolved, but I do remember it happening. We've fielded lots of questions about bedtime, nighttime, the moon out during the day, etc.

He's got clocks and the like, I need to think of some kind of visual for him that shows the times of day and how they correspond to what the Sun will be doing and what he will be doing. Any ideas? Something similar to the visuals they print in the newspaper about the sun rise and sunset schedule--yet for a 3 year old? While I'm out there, I'm looking for a do-it-yourself responsibility chart. The experts all say we should make sure he has some things he's responsbile for (and we like the idea). Problem is, we forget to have him do things--set the table, clean up toys, etc. So the chart is really for us, but loosely for him.
Josie has been making some major strides, literately in the last couple days. I swear her regular vocabulary has exploded from about 20-30 words to easily 50. She is pointing to colors, objects, repeating new words and then using them later. Granted 90% of you would have no idea what she is saying, but we know.

Den is in the Big Easy this week. He was supposed to go in Oct. 2005 and I was going to go with him. As you might recall, this was just about 6 weeks after Katrina hit. Needless to say, that was the second time I was supposed to go to NO and wasn't able. This time it just didn't work logistically, but then Den screwed up his flights so badly, maybe I could still make it. He accidently booked to come back the day after he left instead of Friday. Then his flight was delayed so badly out of our home airport that I brought the kids by for a 30 min. visit over an hour after his flight was to leave.

The photos were taken last night. Not sure I've posted many photos of the addition, but the top one is a good one that shows a lot of the room, right from the kitchen where there used to be a door. We do plan to put furniture in...someday. Right now, the kids are really loving it as a playroom and miraculously Ed's train set is still up. I'm not going to be the one to take it down. In fact, I look forward to building something more permanent when he gets older in the basement. I think I might know a couple relatives who would be interested in helping with that project.

He and Josie have been getting along really well and having fun together. There are still issues, but then they are siblings.