Tayshaun's Vocabulary...

This boy amazes me.

I don't know maybe I'm just being the proud mama. I'm not sure how to gauge it.

I was amazed when Shalyse used to recite the My Little Rainbow story word for word when she was 4 years old. She didn't know her alphabet by sight, then. But she knew EVERY word of that story by heart. This was a book where there were probably 30 words to a page. Anyways, I thought she was amazing but Tayshaun has been surprising me lately.

I should call him "the Parrot". He retains and recalls so much I'm always surprised. More and more I hear my own words and phrases coming out of his mouth. Yet he seems to understand the vocabulary and use the words correctly and in his own sentences.

Here's just a few of the phrases I've heard him use in the past few weeks...
"Mom, you're DISTRACTING me while I'm trying to play this game."

He was taking a bath and I came into the bathroom and asked if he was ready to get out. Here's his reply...
"AS A MATTER OF FACT, I'm done."

When I picked him up from daycare the other day, I asked him if he had fun. This was his reply...
"The kids were DISTURBING me while I was making my legos CREATION."

We went to pick up our sno-cones after work and I asked him if he wanted an Elmo or Garfield flavored one. This is how he answered..."ACTUALLY, I'll have the Batman."

The other day Tayshaun told me I needed to turn right to go to Auntie Lisa's house. I said "oh yeah, which way is right?" So then he proceeded to point to the right direction. I said, "Geez, Tayshaun, you're so smart. Where'd you learn that from?" (of course, he and I have walked through left/right recently but I didn't know that it'd actually stuck with him). This was his reply...
"I just know, Mom, I'm a GENIUS."

As Mr Walking Dictionary continues to try out new words and phrases, I'll try to remember to write them down. I'll keep posting as I hear them. It's hilarious what he comes up with.

Diva-Girl gets a Bubble Bath

So we gave Diva a bubble bath and Tayshaun decided it was time to model with her in some pics. Looks like Tayshaun's being the model....the poser.

Anyways...Tayshaun is learning about responsibility, having pets. In the morning, his job is to let the dogs outside. Most of the time he doesn't complain because it's become a routine but there are some mornings he thinks that if he whines long enough, I'm going to do it.

So then I ask Tayshaun if he wants to eat breakfast and of course he does. It's helpful to explain to him that he relies on me to fix his meals and Kooper and Diva rely on him to let them out in the morning so they can exercise and eat their breakfast.

Before we leave for work/daycare, he brings them in the house. He's pretty helpful bathing them - but mostly he gets in the way.

JazLynn tells me Tayshaun needs to have a "real" dog. She and Tisha have a pug/french bulldog (i think?). I guess Lola's a "real" dog. Actually I'd love to have a larger dog for Tayshaun but then I remember with a bigger dog comes more dog food, bigger poops, wetter bubble baths, and well that just wouldn't be a good idea. So Tayshaun is just stuck with Kooper and Diva. But...he loves them to pieces!

Our First Demolition Derby

Well we saw our first Demolition Derby. Tayshaun LOVED the whole experience.

During our fishing trip last weekend, we tried to get into a Derby in Coalville but it was sold out. So my friends Kris and Rachael found one for us in town...the SL County Fair.

So as we made our way to the arena, Tayshaun kept getting distracted with wii basketball and water skiing, then we ran into the face painting lady..and here he is, getting painted like the Hulk.

we got there pretty early to get the best seats (general admission) so it was still a little empty.

But it didn't take long before the seats started getting fuller. To pass the time, we ate snacks and I tried to take a few pics...

And so did Tayshaun... he loves "girls'" midriffs. Look at that mischievious smile on his face when he spots his "subject". Below is the picture he took...yes, the blonde spectator in front of us..and yes, her midriff was showing.

Then the Derby began. Tayshaun was hollaring just like everyone else. Screaming "Start your engines....and we're off!". He counted down with the speaker "10, 9 , 8, 7, 6...".

Tayshaun was entranced, yelling, laughing, rowdy, cheering...just like you're supposed to be at a Demolition Derby. We had a great time!

It got cold and dark quickly but Tayshaun's taste buds weren't tiring. He ate licorice, sponge-bob ice creams, and churros. And just before leaving, he ordered a hot dog. Pee-eww! For anyone who doesn't know me very well, I hate the smell, look, taste, and texture of hotdogs!

After the Derby and on our way to the parking lot, we visited the petting zoo. It took Tayshaun a few minutes to warm up to the goats, donkeys, turtles, and other creatures. Then we started off to the car. It was very dark as we made our way to the parking lot. I had made a mental note of where we'd parked but when we exited the fairgrounds, Tayshaun says to me "My instincts tell me our car is over there!" And he points in the general direction of our car. I was pretty shocked he used the word "instinct'. I said to him, "What do you know about the word instincts." He says, "you know Mom, SpongeBob."

My boy's a genius. Love ya, Tayshaun!

Screaming like a girl at the Doctor's office

It was Tayshaun's 5-year old visit to the pediatrician's office on Monday. This is supposed to be his pre-kindergarten check-up where he completes a series of innoculations and won't have to be stuck again until 11 years old. Yippee!

Incidentally, Tayshaun's just misses the birthday deadline and won't be starting Kindergarten until next year. My frikkin' budget is going to have to include daycare for another year. GRRRRR!

Anywayzzz. "Tayshaun -- honey, I'm never going to let you live this down. I'm going to tease you for the rest of your life...in front of your girlfriends...in front of your children...everytime I get the chance, Mister."

First of all, Tayshaun's original appointment was scheduled last month. So the day before the appointment I decided that I'd prepare him for the shots I knew he was getting so he wouldn't be surprised. Well he thought about it all night. So the questions began when we got up. And on the ride to the doctor's office, it continued...(in his whinest voice) "Is it going to hurt?" "Am I gonna bleed?" "Why do I gotta have a shot?" "If I be good, do I hafta have a shot?". Whah, whah, whah, whah, whah! So I cranked up our newly purchased Black Eyed Peas cd and he forget about the shot(s) for a while...since he was concentrating on the lyrics to Boom Boom Pow instead.

Well as I mentioned before, we were running so late that when we finally got there, the receptionist decided that we needed to re-schedule. So Tayshaun got luck....on that day.

So this time, I decided not to warn him....until we were riding the elevator up to the doctor's office. "Oh yeah, babe, remember you're gonna have to have a couple of shots today, k?" "Shotsss! Ma, whiiiiiiiiii?" "It's ok Tayshaun -- all the kids get shots today" I thought if I sprung that one on him, he'd have to pretend to be brave. It worked.

So we giggled with the nurse as she checked his height (he's in the 97 percentile) and his weight (he's in the 46 percentile). She checked his eye sight 20/30 (which I guess is good). She checked his hearing..acceptable.

Then the doctor got his turn. He asked lots of questions. What comes after 3? Can you blink one eye? Can you wiggle your ears? What do you do when you're hungry? Let's see how long you can balance on one leg. After his series of questions, he remarked that Tayshaun talks very well for a 5 year old (he's 4).

So now the nurse comes back in with FOUR syringes. I hadn't dared ask how many shots he was going to get because I knew Tayshaun was going to terrified. But I didn't realize that he'd get FOUR pokes. Ouchie!

He was pretty shocked when he realized all FOUR of those shots were for him. He tried to be brave when she asked him to hold my hands. I squeezed them tight because I knew what was coming. The nurse leaned her weight on his lower extremities. But even before the first shot went through the skin, Tayshaun was screaming bloody murder. After the second one, he managed to kick his legs out of the nurses grip. But we wrestled him back into a hold to finish the next two.

I did feel sorry for you Tayshaun. You scowled at the nurse and me like we were your worst enemies. You cried so much that I finally had to tell you that the girl in the next office was going to make fun of you 'cause she didn't cry when she got her shots. That little fib seemed to pull out the bravado in you so that your cries became little whimpers (along with big fat tears). You wouldn't talk to me all the way to the car. And you walked like a crippled old man. When we finally reached the parking lot, your cries got louder again.

Look at that face! I love you...even when you're a little CRY, CRY!

Pioneer Day Parade

Thank goodness it was burning hot on Pioneer Day. I like parades but not when I'm having to keep Tayshaun entertained. His attention span is only for about 20 minutes so yes...we lasted 30.

Then we ran for the nearest convenience store to re-hydrate. The rest of the day we played at Tishie and JazLynn's swimming pool and ate pizza. We had a great day!