Things Sam is into this week:
He told me a great story and I wrote it up, I might post it later. It's called 'The Fox, The Squirrel and the Baby Chicken'.
He started to write another story himself on the computer. His typing is much slower than his speaking, as finding the right keys and spelling hold him back. I told him to just write then go back and do the spelling, but he doesn't want to. The new story is called 'The Storm of Heaven'.
I wasn't planning to go on about religion, but this is my blog entry for getting back on track, and it's one element of life that I didn't expect. I thought I could have a relationship of mutual ignorance with religion and church. I ignore you, you ignore me.
Ok, other things Sammy says that I like.
Is our thermometer measuring cold or hot?
What number is infinity?
(T: Infinity is the number that comes after all the other numbers)
What is outside of space?
(T: According to Einstein, whose biography I am reading, there is no outside, it kind of wraps around again. It's all space, and it's expanding, but not into anything, and it wraps back around the way a 2D person on Earth who walking in what they thought was a straight line would eventually get back to the same place).
I am going to be a scientist. A brain scientist.
Do I really have a lizard brain?
(T: Yes, you have three brains according to this diagram in my brain science book. Lizard, Mammal and human. Mammal means animals that drink milk).
This is what Olly is going to wear tomorrow. A onesie, pink and white pants, a red shirt and rocket socks. Ok? I'm putting it in this box.
I have invented a 2012 game to play with Sammy. The aim is for him to be more independent with his sleeping, without causing upset for when he really needs to be with us. To create a payoff for staying in bed that balances the fun of cuddling with us. We really don't have room in the bed and I have to wake up to feed Olly at night. I'm really tired.
He can get points for
a) going to sleep by himself after a story (without needing someone to cuddle him to sleep)
b) staying in bed all night, or going back to bed if he gets up to pee
c) in the case of an afternoon nap being appropriate, managing it by himself.
That means that in one day, he can earn 2 points and maybe three on a weekend.
He can redeem the points by having a 'Sammy Evening', for which he is in control of the events of the evening. What we will eat, what dessert there will be, and what the activity is that everyone will participate in. Games or watching a movie, and which ones.
I had a think about what a good payoff would be. I thought about buying him shows on iTunes that he could play on his iPhone, but that's kind of boring and unsocial. The things that 5 year olds like most, I reckon, are control, being important and having the full attention of his parents. Sam seems pretty keen on the game. Last night he won 2 points.
I have been reading 'Brain Rules' and 'Brain Rules for Baby' which are better than they sound. The baby one is also about pregnancy and toddlers and is full of interesting ideas. But I 'read' it as an audiobook which makes it harder for me to recall. I'm going to buy the paper version. In fact, I'm going to buy it for everyone I know who is pregnant right now.
There's more I want to say about Sam but I can't remember everything now.
He's great at doing his homework. When I do chinese in parallel, I learn it.
He's writing lists for us of 'things that we haven't done yet'. Trying to get us organised. 'Right Mummy, are there any more things not done yet?' It seems to be a thoughtful way of pointing out things we haven't done for him (his curtain, taping his Tagalog songs for youtube).
He loves his sister and is really great with her and she loves him right back. Really.
