Catching up with Carter: personality, Disneyland and "school"

Okay. I haven't posted about Carter in a bit, and we've been busy. In fact, we are going to be even busier. We have a trip to Utah and the Bahamas this month, so you will see fewer posts on my blog in January. For now, here are three fun updates about Carter.

I thought this sums up Carter well. I went to pick him up from children's ministries this morning, after my Women's Bible Study. All the toddlers were on the floor in a circle near the teacher. Some were playing with toys or puzzles, but a majority were watching my son. He was standing at the head of the circle, pressing buttons on a yellow bus toy. When the tin-sounding music would start straining from the bus, he'd squat like he was surfing and wiggle his bottom in a crazy, toddler dance. This was accompanied by his high-pitched giggles and those of the kids and teacher who were his audience. Always the class clown. To all his future teachers, I apologize. I've had students like my son, and I'm working on training his little heart to be obedient when he needs to be.

Yesterday we took Carter to Disneyland for the first time. Ryan and I were so excited to receive annual passes and parking from my parents! We drove up after Carter's nap, and he was absolutely at a loss for words. When we first walked under the train tunnel to enter Main Street, he actually sat frozen in his stroller for a few minutes. It was too amazing for movement--even from Carter. He wanted to see the horses pulling the cart, go on the choo-choo whistling in the Main Street Station, visit the characters warmly waving at every family nearby, and touch the millions of decorations and details we passed. The park was still decorated for Christmas, so we were able to see snow on the castle and all the lights when it got dark later that evening.

We started slowly, having him go on the carousel first. Did you know that a carousel has moving parts (up and down) that go around and a merry-go-round has static horses that only go around in a circle? Anyway, we then tried Pinocchio, which proved to be a bit darker and scarier than I remember. Thankfully, Carter was enthralled with the moving car and the loud music more than he was bothered by the dark creatures plagueing the rider. In the picture, you can see Carter hanging from the line directors like a monkey (his feet are hanging, though you can't see it.) Again, this was for the amusement of all the moms laughing in sympathy for me. We went on Dumbo, which Carter liked, but called "swings" for the rest of the day. The Casey Jr. train proved to be a hit too, as Carter admires and loves anything locomotive related. He happily waved to all the tourists as he chugged by them in the monkey cage. We also went on the real train that goes around the whole park, which Carter found amusing for only the first five minutes. I think he likes to look AT the train, but riding it and not being able to see it isn't the same. It took about half an hour to go around the park, and they kept asking him to sit down, which most of you know is NOT his forte. We then went on Pirates, which he doesn't find scary yet. He was interested in the fact that the whole ride is a tunnel, and the excess of water features also gave it a thumbs up. It's a Small World was fun, but he was starting to get tired. He wanted to wiggle out of his seat and was hard to contain. Again, the water and tunnels kept him somewhat satisfied. In the end, we also partook of Toon Town and walked around Tomorrowland and Adventureland. It got amazingly cold as the day progressed. We knew it was time to leave when his teeth were chattering and his hands shaking--despite a long sleeve shirt, a thick sweatshirt with a hood and a heavy canvas jacket with a hood over that. He lasted until we got to the car, but the warmth of the automobile and blankies we had waiting in his car seat were too much to resist. As we drove away from the gigantic Mickey and Friends Parking Structure, he was snoring away, dreaming of tunnels, trains and Disney magic.

Finally, Carter has dumped Elmo--not entirely, but he is newly interested in The Wiggles. He jumps, dances and sings to the acts the four singers provide. Since he would watch the Wiggles for hours of the day, I decided it was time to do some structured learning time with him. Three times a week, we go upstairs to our "school" table and learn. We've been covering alphabet letters, numbers, colors, shapes, comparisons (big and small, short and tall, etc.), fine motor skills and Bible. He has Genesis 1:1 posted on his closet mirror with drawings to help make it kid friendly. He doesn't sit still very long, which is partly because of needed training and maturity and partly because he has the energy of the Energizer Bunny. Having taught elementary school, I know kids are different. So, we sit for some of the lesson, but we jump and clap to the alphabet and play "drums" when we count. One night, Carter amazed Ryan and I by identifying almost the whole alphabet on flashcards. The next day he only knew A, O and E. Another day he counted to 10. Currently, he can count to 1. It is amazing how one day they concentrate and recall and the next day they fuss and look completely overwhelmed. "School" is a way of disciplining my patience level too. It has been fun to see him learn and explore his world. I love being his mommy! Well, if you read this far, thank you for obliging a mother's interests in her kid. : )