Carnival!

We took Sayan to his first carnival!!

For at least a year he has been wanting to go on the ferris wheel. Whenever he sees one he demands we stop but it hasn't worked out. A couple of days ago I noticed the normally quiet parking lot where they hold the farmers market was buzzing with activity as they set up for a fair!

Granted it was a small little carnival but perfect for our small little person.

So on Saturday, as his reward for the stars he earned on his responsibility chart (more on that later) we took him to the carnival.

First thing was of course... the ferris wheel:

Jai was nervous he would get scared at the top but he was just thrilled. Loved it and pointed out our car down in the lot and everything else he could see from the "high high place".

He then ventured onto a ride "all by himself", the Speedy Cars ride:

Which goes around in a circle fairly slowly until it reaches a curve then it whips around jerking you back and forth. The first round or two he was on the verge of tears and I almost made them stop but Jaison turned it into a fun experience by cheering every time it went into the curve and by the end Sayan was whooping and smiling and laughing and eager to go again.

Next up the boys rode the roller coaster. Again, mini sized but just right for us:

He rode a couple of other rides by himself including this one which he chose to do as his "last" special ride:

All in all a wonderful time at our tiny fair which made for a happy boy and family.

Blue bonnets!

nature boy

Another favorite activity is nature hikes. We take along a nature bag:

(no this is not dog poop as Jaison observed it to be)

And head out on the trails collecting flora and fauna (the remains) of all kinds. Many many bones join the collection, as well as seed pods and lichen and shells. This plate sat on our kitchen table for about two weeks before I reached my breaking point of dining with bones every meal. Artistic perhaps, appetizing not so much.

There is a trail system just a few minutes from the house. Here is Sayan enjoying the spring day, holding a bunch of mountain laurels.

legos

Sayan LOVES playing with his legos. One of the few activities that will engage him independently for long periods of time. It's amazing the things he thinks to build: dogs, ducks, the north pole, houses in varying architectural styles, airports and flying craft of all kinds. Here is a house that we built he was particularly proud of:

While we were in Dallas he tried out Lillian's small legos and was surprisingly more adept with his creations. I hadn't been sure if they would be too intimidating and frustrating being that much smaller but I guess it was somehow more empowering and gave more creative options. But I'm hoping to get another few months of play with the "big legos" before transitioning, maybe for his birthday.

audio books

New favorite discovery for Sayan and parents: audio books!

Passive entertainment without TV!

dentist

Sayan had his first trip to the dentist on Thursday. He did so well! We found a pediatric dentist who came highly recommended and turns out she is right down the street from us which worked nicely.

Sayan was excited (after having watched Berenstain Bears go to the dentist he had an idea of what to expect-- though did ask me as we were driving if the dentist had "yankers").

They were wonderful with him. The dental assistant showed him all the tools, the spinning toothbrush, the water gun and Mr. Thirsty and let him play with the controls on the chair so he could adjust it. It was so cute the chairs are mini-people sized!!

Here he is all geared up for the cleaning:

He had his choice of like 9 flavors for the toothpaste part and chose mint "because Nana eats mints and I like mint ice cream". 2/3 of the way through the cleaning he revised his opinion that mint was NOT a good choice, and next time he would opt for cherry, watermelon or strawberry. But he toughed it out. The dental assistant was very impressed this was his first time as he was such a pro at following directions:

At the end of the cleaning the dentist came and ... he does have two cavities. Though she called them "weaknesses" which I thought was very tactful for kids. We had noticed decay on those two teeth which prompted the trip. Even though we have been pretty good with brushing since he was 18 months (or even younger!) I realized a few months ago that I never really got the top teeth between the front teeth and the back ones as his mouth was so small and I didn't force his lip up. I guess I should have as those were the teeth that had the cavities. But does go to show that good brushing habits do work as the rest of his teeth were strong and healthy! Sorry Sayan, I will do better! So now we need to use a fluoride toothpaste and go in for filling.

He got a "goodie bag" at the end with toothbrush, timer and little mirror that he is fascinated with. Overall was a great experience and now Jai and I just need to step up with the brushing...

Lillian

We went to Dallas a couple weekends ago for Lillian's birthday party. Lillian (Sayan's God-sister) turned 4 and Sayan was soooooooo excited to go and visit her and go to her party. When we arrived in Dallas, before we even made it to their house, Sayan picked this flower "cause I want to bring it to Lillian".

It was fantastic to spend time with Genevra, Avery, Lillian and Madelyn. Sayan and Lillian hit it off again-- though her outgoing, engaging personality was occasionally more than our quiet, inward boy was used to. In general they played really well together, sharing and talking and getting into joint mischief. They especially loved their tubby times together.

The highlight of the weekend was Lillian's party at Pump it Up, a bounce-house haven-- Sayan went berserk he loved it so much. Room after room of super-sized inflatable slides, mazes and bouncers. Below was a group shot of all the kids, Lillian is to the right of Sayan.

Lunch for 25 kids plus parents followed-- Genevra outdid herself with and Sayan is spoiled for life as to what to expect at a birthday party from now on. He got to sit across from the birthday girl and chose a pink balloon (what else!) as his party favor to take home.

Driving back to Austin Sayan was pretty quiet for awhile. I asked how he was doing and he said, "Mommy, I'm gonna miss my Dallas sisters (what we called Lillian and baby Maddie)."

I asked if he enjoyed his time and he replied: "Yes, Lillian is such a good friend to me, I like her a lot. I want to go back and play with her every day."

So we talked about friends and getting to see Lillian more in the future and making new friends like Lillian in Austin. To which he replied:

"No I want to go back to Dallas. That's where Lillian --- and the bounce house is!"

Girls and jumbo slides, what more could a boy want?