Monday, June 21, 2010

Memorial Day Weekend

It's become my habit to post infrequently, but fortunately a visit from the grandkids always merits a new post.

Caleb, Ethan, and their parents blessed us with a visit over the holiday weekend. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with boys and already look forward to our next visit.

Dan and I really enjoyed watching the boys play so well together. Even though Ethan was was not feeling great, the boys got along remarkably well. It brought back memories of Rachel and Michael playing together. I think Ethan is younger than Michael was but their play has some parallels. Most of the time, Caleb can creatively include Ethan, while at the same time, successfully acquire the toy or color he prefers. I think that is part of the territory for an older sibling. Ethan wants to be around Caleb and do everything that Caleb does. It's so cute to hear their conversations.

One day we were driving down Moore and as we passed the cemetery, Ethan exclaimed, "BONES, BONES are there!" I was dumbfounded that a two year old had made that connection when Rachel told me that they had not talked about that.

I again enjoyed reading books to both of the boys - Ethan likes being read to but loses interest more quickly while Caleb continues to be captivated for the duration. One of the books they brought was a favorite of Calebs. I think I may have read it to him a dozen times during their visit. I can't remember the name of the book but I do remember Ethan's frequent inquiry, "Not really a scary monster?" even when he was across the room as I read to Caleb. He loved hearing the book but wanted assurances that it was all pretend.

I realized something during this visit that hadn't occurred to me until now. While I read to my own kids for many hours every week, I didn't read to them at bedtime. They were always so tired by 7:00 that they practically fell asleep as they climbed into their beds. I guess that's why I still enjoy reading to the kids more during the day than at bedtime.