El Raspo

We recently were with some friends who don't know George well yet. They commented on how cute his raspy voice was. At the time I said I figured he had a sore throat, but he wasn't complaining of any pain anywhere. Later, James said, "I think his voice is so raspy because of his screaming all the time." So yep, that's probably it. I guess in order to keep the cute raspy voice, we also have to put up with the screaming. Hmmm, it's almost worth it! El Raspo has started blessing himself when he burps or coughs as well as sneezes. It is very sweet to hear him say "Bwess you!" happily to himself after a satisfying burp. Another favorite of mine is when he asks for a drink. To say "I'm thirsty" he says "Ach-Tea!" This has to be said with a German type "hock" at the back of your throat. Also he holds out the "tea" part with a fermata for effect. As you might guess, he has lots of people who are willing to get him an Ach-Tea. Or two.

I have loved cuddling George to bed for his naps and at night. James usually gets him at night, but sometimes I do as well. The usual routine is getting a drink, brushing teeth, going potty, and getting on pjs. Then we close the blinds, turn on the fan, turn off the big light, and turn on the fan. Then we settle in for "books." To me 2-3 is plenty, but no matter how many we read, George is always very upset when we finish. It takes a while to calm down the thrashing, flopping two year old, but eventually he will nod when I ask, "would you like a song?" I love to hear him sing along his own version of his requests: "Gah" (I am a child of God), "Twinkoh" (Twinkle), "Much" (I love you so much--this is his "song" by the way), and "Boat" (Baby's Boat). I got the "Much" song from a Discovery Toys cd, and it has become his song. Each baby kind of has had their own lullaby that I sing the most to them. I love to hear his little voice singing "I yuh-yoo, I yuh-yoo, I yuh-yoo!"

When George wants some of my time all to himself, he will invite me into his room to "play." This involves getting whatever he's in the mood for out of his toy box. He doesn't play with anything for too long, though, before it ultimately comes to reading time. He points at the rocking chair, and says "Sit. Chair. Read. Books." Very telegraphic, but I get the point. The other day I lost George for a time and when I found him he was quietly sitting in his room on the chair, reading. He invited me to join him in a very sweet way.

George loves to wrestle with James. He and Owen have invented a new way to torture James by jumping on him in bed and wrestling him. They are usually good about making the bed afterwards. George has a very tough wrestling face and stance. He also makes a great ninja or padowan with a light sabre. He has learned to defend himself around here!