Poop List

So just now Derek is telling Steve that I said he was on the "poop list"..that is putting it mildly...and I did use the term "poop"..although we all know what I meant. And even after today, at the dinner table he was messing around and I said to get down..he says "No, I will not get down"..needless to say, he did get down and was put in timeout. He just got put in bed and I was standing in his room..it is pitch black..after a few minutes he says "Get out of my room, get out". I really don't think he knew I was in there..I was silent. After that remark, he got pulled down from the bed and we had a little talk about his mouth. Incredable..the loud alarm is on for each night now. There must be a new name for his decisions today. Let me think..how about Big Balls Bernie.

The Most Incredable Case of Nerve

Tuesday morning: I am in bed and I hear noises outside our upstairs window. It was rumbling and I thought it was the neighbors or something. Steve comes out of the bathroom and I ask him to look out the window. He says "Come here and see". I get up and look out the window...what do I see, but Derek pulling his play kitchen across the deck in his PJ's. He had gone outside, gotten into the shed and had retreived his play kitchen. It was out there because he hadn't played with it for months and was taking up space in his bedroom. He had asked for it a couple of times lately, but he has PLENTY of toys in the house and was told "no". What he did was get up and ask his Uncle Kenny who is visiting from California if he could have it...and the answer was yes from Kenny, not knowing it was outside in the shed.

Now, Derek knows full well the rules in our house and the rules in general...no touching outside doors, no going outside without permission, no going beyond a certain area in the backyard and no shed!!!!! He had also gotten up and touched the knob on the gas fireplace, gotten into Steves office and retreived the flashlight!!!! I WAS PISSED. He is on restriction in a chair for the day. He pushes the boundries way too much. We are back to the very loud alarm on his door I guess. We do smile about how incredable it was that he thought he could just do what he wanted....seeing him pulling that kitchen on the deck made us both open our eyes very wide with amazement..giant set of balls he has already. I fear for the future for sure.

Curse words....

Since Derek came to live with us we have had to really stop swearing! He was periodically repeating what we would say. He has repeated most swear words at one time or another. When my old cat K.C. was peeing on everything, one day I was in my office and Derek was in his bedroom and I said "God damn cat". Then later I heard Derek casually say "God damn cat"..just like it was nothing..lol

Then another time the cat had got done peeing on my rug, I said "Fucking cat" and Derek was in his highchair and asked me "Did you say fucking cat"? I was like.."uh, no...I said trucking bat"..don't think I convinced him.

One day when he was in his timeout chair, he was really pissed and said "I'm gonna break this fucking chair"...oh my...so needless to say, we have really had to correct our choice of words and expressions.

Spiders and Tomatoes

Just a random memory of about a year ago when Derek would start having issues with not staying in bed and he would get up over and over....so I would have him stand in his room and say to him "well, you wanted to be up..now you are up". He was most unhappy with that. I would lie in his bed and say how warm and comfy it was...hoping he would get the hint. Well, that is when the "creative, mean talk" would begin. On one occasion, he is standing there and he is trying to get me upset by saying "You're just gonna fall down in that box of tomatoes and the spiders are gonna eat ya"..it was all I could do to not laugh outloud. And the same time he says Grandpa is going to mess up my office.

Legs and Spiders?

Steve brought Derek upstairs to kiss me goodnight and on his way back down the stairs, Derek says "My legs are old to go down the stairs" and then in the bedroom he tells Steve that "Grandma isn't putting him to bed because her legs are broken". OMG..funny..

A couple of months ago we had given Derek these plastic spiders and Steve went into his bedroom and Derek says something about the spiders were climbing and trying to get on his bed "So I subsequently broke their legs"...total correct context...that was one of the best use of words from him...we work on his vocab constantly....guess its paying off...

At dinner tonight Steve was saying that he was almost done with his soup, meaning he was going to eat Derek's and Derek crosses his fingers over his bowl and say "negative, that means no". We love it when Steve teases him about stealing his food and Derek does the "prision cover" with his hands over his plate...poor kid..lol..we give him such a teasing time so often.

Christmas 09

So...Derek awoke at 3am and Steve put him back to bed..then EJ woke him up with bells and stomping on the roof around 6:30am. Derek says he is still resting..he had put his pillow and blanket by his door of the bedroom! lol

He comes out and starts opening his gift (the train) and says "Hey, its that train from the store"!! He was very excited! He and Steve put it together and then he went to the garage to get this other gift (a huge red wagon with wooden sides)..that was a hit too. Come on warmer weather...gotta get that thing outside! lol

We had a great morning with everyone that came over...Steve and I made a breakfast buffet and goodies..yum yum..then we opened presents..after Dereks meltdown cause wanted to go outside...after he opens a gift, all was good..he cashed in on lots of cars, trucks, books, misc stuff...he is one busy child now. This Saturday morning today started off well...he snatched a couple of M & M's from the living room...lol

Christmas Eve 2009

Derek was pretty excited today on the eve before Christmas. He mostly had a good day. At the store last night, he had a meltdown about this train set he wanted sooooo badly! He and Steve went out to the car to call Santa to let him know Derek had been a good boy and he wants the train set. I, of course, was purchasing it in the store for him. He and I read "The Night Before Christmas" around 9pm, put cookies and milk out for Santa. Steve and EJ just got done putting together this aweseome Radio Flyer wagon with the wooden sides. Derek will be opening his train set when he first gets up and that will keep him busy before family arrives around 9am to have breakfast and open gifts! At dinner it was funny, Steve kept stealing Dereks green beans and Derek says "turn you plate around so he doesn't get your stuff"..OMG..so funny. Merry Christmas everyone.

The Name Game

For about 18 months we have been assigning names to Derek according to his behavior and or moods. The first was "Professor Piss N Moan". Everything was about being pissy and he was to whine about everything. Off and on we would ask the Jenny and Nathan at daycare, "So how was the Professors day?" The next name was "Last Word Larry"...he had to have the last word in when he was being told to do something he didn't want to do. Next is "Harry Horses Ass"..enough said...butthead butthead butthead. Another is "Babbling Billy"...this is a good name because he came to us at a little over three years old, he had the language skills of an 18 month old and he is so great at talking now. Another is : "Dr. Two Cents"..always having to put his "two cents worth" in with every discussion or request..ended up having to tell him "no comment" when he was asked to do something...lol..and then there is "Babbling Billy"..this is an endearing name because he never stops talking now. His vocabulary is so huge and he is so smart. I am sure we will have several new names for him in the future.

BLAH BLAH BLAH

For quite awhile now, when Derek is being a butthead with his mouth and attitude, Steve would start saying to him "blah blah blah"..ooooooooooo...that didn't go over well with Derek. It would really piss him off and he would say "Please do not do the blah blah blah". OMG..hilarious..

Can he get any funnier?

A couple of months ago Steve had given Derek a piece of candy. Steve was on the couch and Derek was behind him near the stairs. Steve asks Derek to come and Derek says "Oh, I don't need you right now, don't talk to me"...with that Steve gets up and walks past Derek and snatches the candy from his hand and pops it in his own mouth! Derek hollars "You don't take candy from a mans hands"!! And of course the crying starts...everything is about crying when you are a little boy and don't get your way. Steve then explains about how he hurt his Grandpas feelings with his "I don't need you" statement. And no, he didn't get another piece of candy...lol..he did later.

"We Got A Runner"

Derek has talked and giggled in his sleep since he has lived with us. It's pretty funny. He went through this "sleep walking" phase many many nights...although mostly he was awake messing around.

His giggle is do darn infectious at all times. I just laugh listening to him laugh. This past Saturday, he was napping...he was asleep for sure...Steves hear's him whisper "Hey EJ" in his sleep.(EJ was asleep in the next room.) Too funny. Another day at daycare he was napping on the couch when he suddenly sits upright and states "My favorite color is yellow"...then falls back asleep. When we were sharing a bed with him at Grand Wolf Lodge a few months ago, he was giggling during the night..cracks us up.

Early on in 2007, due to Derek not being raised with a very stable bedtime etc, he would have gone to bed and then would appear at all hours of the night in different areas in our house...some on his hot wheels bike or just messing around. He would ride into the living room or come upstairs and say "Good morning". OMG...does he know its the middle of the night? I don't think so! The foster mom had to finally put up a baby gate at his door because he would wander...and that wandering continued at our house for a very long time. He just would wake up and decide it was time to play. His entire life now is constant preoccupation with play..that's a five year old for you.

We finally put up a baby gate at his door, a motion detector alarm, bells on the gate in the middle of the hallway and nowadays an alarm hooked to his door! Safety was such a concern as time went along. We didn't want him hurting himself or getting outside. I would find him playing with the dishwasher, toys, in our face upstairs saying "good morning" at 3am!! At least he never got into something bad...thank goodness! Here is one last story that will stick with us forever..you have to get a visual on this one now:
We had gone to the pet store to get some fish suppies for our large tank. We found this little tank toy that sits at the bottom of the tank. It was a Patrick (a starfish character) from Sponge Bob Squarepants show. He was attached to what I think was this hamburger shell kind of thing and it would bubble open to expose Patrick periodically. We were in bed and I kept hearing this clacking noise..I went downstairs and Derek was by the fish tank. I took him by the hand to get him back into bed...I wasn't happy...and I noticed his whole arm was wet...and the sleeve was pushed way up to his shoulder...he had been fishing for that damn tank toy and had it pulled out of the water..that is what was clacking..and Derek had dropped it back into the tank when he heard me come down the stairs...I was like "OMG...(sounds of the angry teacher from Peanuts cartoon voice)...What the Hell Derek? Needless to say he got to sleep with a wet arm for the rest of the night..."sleep walking", I don't think so...there are dozens and dozens of nights he was out of bed doing something...we would hear him and say to each other "We got a runner"!!! Too funny now..and many times funny when the episodes happen...and sometimes not so funny when we were very tired. He is much better now..he is really settling into a great bedtime routine.

Just Now

I have to share this one that just happened tonight..lol

Steve hollars to me to wrap Jennifer's xmas gift and Derek says "Jennifers present is me"! OMG..he is so funny! He has had a great week at daycare and home. He mostly has great days..when the bad ones happen he is just a butthead with behavior. He is downstairs laughing and playing with Cora and the flashlight. They BOTH love the flashlight or laser light play. He and Cora get along so well and Cora is so sweet and patient with Derek.

Derek Meets The Warden

When Derek started visiting us in late 2007, he did pretty good at bedtime. Before bed, he went potty & brushed teeth etc. Steve and I would be in the living room and Derek would call out "have to go potty", one right after the other, ABOUT 50 TIMES I swear...he was testing us. Other than that, Derek was right at home with us. We were having lots of fun with him.

For the first few months bed went pretty well..then..he started getting up immediately after going to bed and opening the door. Getting a tad tired of this, I would just stand at his door and wait for it to open..and it did..a little bit at a time....he was no fool. He was carefully trying to open it quietly. I'm standing there and I hear him breathing at the door,then a quick "eeeeh" sound of the door with each small pull from him. He did that about 4 times, then the door opened and he would look up at me looking at him. And my look to him was: Meet the Warden of your cell block Bobby. (Bobby is one of his many nicknames Steve & I have given him. It doesn't mean anything...its just Bobby..cause thats what we do..and it gets a reaction from him that is hilarious)

I would then have to explain about bedtime again..and this happened..again and again and again...he has refined his "no going to sleep" techniques many times and it is mostly good, but Derek will always be creative and determined..I hope this serves him well in life. There are many stories related to bedtime I will share….many many many.

Yellow

"Yellow is my favorite color" says Derek since I can remember. So needless to day, he has lots of yellow things...from toys to bedding, from clothes to boots and jackets. We can't fail buying something yellow. I remember taking him to the Fun Center this last summer and he and Grandma Titus were heading to have him ride this kiddie ride with planes. I thought for sure he would pick the yellow one. I glance down and then up again to take a video of him as the ride started. I was freaking when I didn't see him on the yellow plane....he decided on the blue one he explained later..go figure...lol. Another time Derek had gone shopping with us and we got this yellow car. Steve stashed it away when we got home. Derek, who was just beginning to talk better and with more words, asked later in a real casual way: "Say.....what happened to that yellow car we got?" We cracked up..good memory..and we are happy about that.