So Lucy likes to take down the spices (and extracts, and colored sugar) from the spice rack and smell them.  This is usually a harmless passtime, which possibly develops her sensory awareness, so usually I let her be.  There have been a couple of spills (sesame seeds come to mind), but, as I say, it’s all usually harmless.

So yesterday, I noticed Lucy pouring the orange sugar from the bottle into the bottle cap and eating it.  I questioned her, and she denied eating it.  I warned her that the things on the spice rack go in foods, but aren’t very tasty by themselves.  (Not true of colored sugar, but it was a general statement.)  I walked away.

I heard screaming.  I returned to Lucy, who had an empty bottle of peppermint extract in her hand.  She reeked of peppermint.  And she was screaming.  She claimed she had not drunken it all, (I’m not sure how much “all” was to start with) but it was gone.  So I hugged her, trying not to laugh but failing miserably, and poured her some water.  Thus ended Samantha’s nap, and Lucy and I had a discussion about listening to Mommy and the proper treatment of things in the spice rack.

When we told the story to Craig, I asked Lucy if she would be eating anything else from the spice rack.

Sheepish smile.  “No.”

Craig: “Lucy, why are you so intense?”

Lucy: “I’m not intense!”

Craig: “Yes, you are!”

Lucy: “I’m not in tents, I’m right here!”

Lucy got some new blocks while we were in Texas, and has been quite busy with them.  Her favorite constructions so far are all sorts of towers, the taller the better.

I think I learned how to turn the pictures and forgot.  Sorry.

The part of the conversation I caught between Lucy and the sweet potato in the (new) microwave (thank you Fr. R.B.!):

“…because you’re my dinner and I’m warming you up.”

This is Lucy’s first “official” narration.  A big part of the homeschooling method we’re looking at is telling back stories the child has heard as well as the story of what happened on a trip, during the day, etc.  We went to the zoo today with Craig’s mom today, and here’ is Lucy’s story (which required some prompting, but not too much).  Here it is!

“I’ll tell you about the zoo.  We went to the zoo.  And then we saw the animals.  And then we didn’t go see the lions.  Abnd then what did we did?  Samantha and us and you and mommy and me and Samantha and NaNa.  I didn’t want to walk.  Because my knee hurt because I got blood because I fell on th ground because I wnet on the mountain on the grass and then I got hurt.  Then I got a yellow snowball.”

And here are the pictures…

Gorilla – they were busy today.

Posing by the orangutans.

Samantha’s new friends.

Lucy: Row, row, row your boat, gently down the street!

That’s right, only in New Orleans.

We were playing with a blue slinky the other day, and it sat still in an arch.  I said “It looks like a rainbow.”

Lucy said, “Yes!  It has lots of beautiful colors!  Like blue.  And also, blue!”

It’s true, the slinky was only blue.  I laughed really, really hard, and Lucy didn’t quite understand why.

Big news the last couple of days.  Samantha said her first “word” in sign language two days ago (Monday).  It was “milk”.  I was quite excited.  Today we were playing, and I put a bowl on my head, and then on hers.  Then she took it and put it on her head a few times and laughed.  And I wondered, “where did that little baby of mine go??”  She’s grown up!

Then tonight, while we had a living room full (and I mean full) of high school students for one of Craig’s Theology and Eat sessions, Lucy (who had insisted on wearing panties all day and only had one accident so far) went into the bathroom and used her potty all by herself!  It was a momentous occasion.  Ten years from now, she may wonder why I needed to broadcast it over the internet, but since I’m doing a pretty poor job of keeping track of these milestones otherwise, this will have to do.

Tempus fugit.  Much faster than I care for it to, really.

We start tomorrow with “official” homeschooling.  I thought it would be fun to let grandparents, et alia, follow along, so there is a new page (you should see it at the top under the title) devoted entirely to Lucy’s little projects, my lesson plans, the books were’re reading, and the like.

Before you get too excited about it though, remember that Lucy is only two.  So “homeschooling” at this point is going to focus on a letter a week (with themed books, crafts, snacks, etc.), a saint or two a week, and lots of playing and being two.  But I’m hoping that getting an early start on the structure (!) of organized (!) home learning will pay off when we get to quadratic equations and the like in a couple of years (kidding, only Craig thinks that will really happen).

So check out the new page, there promises to be plenty of cuteness oozing from it in the weeks to come.

[In the car, on the way home from Craig’s work]

Craig: Lucy, were you good today?  Did you help mommy?

Lucy: Yes!  I pushed Samantha down!

Jury is out on how or why that was “helpful”.