IMG_3631, originally uploaded by Sandra Maynard.

Actually, we did not go to Sportsmans Lake this weekend and feed the quackers and honkers but a nice person sent me these photos that she had taken at the beginning of September (Labor Day, to be exact).

Jon made it home jet-lagged but in one piece. We drove him to the airport on Sunday, however, because he has to teach a class in St. Louis. He'll be home on Friday. Brenden and I consoled each other by eating all of dad's swiss chocolate.

The ratio of hours of enjoyment to dollars spent, when it comes to Play-Doh, is pleasingly high in our household. I, however, am about as talented as a kindergardener and was only able to make little balls and strings. Brenden didn't mind; he'd take my little arsenal of Play-Doh balls and pound them flat with his plastic Bob the Builder hammer or load them up in one of Duck's flatbed trailers and choo-choo them around the table (Duck is a friend of Thomas).

Brenden's vocabulary is exploding - he surprised me during one of our Play-Doh sessions, by saying "poop!" and making the ASL sign for poop (make a thumb's up signal and grasp thumb w/other fist. Pull thumb out of fist. It's a very descriptive sign). He didn't get it quite right, so I showed him how and he got it right. Then it occured to me to actually check for poop. He had a good diaper load.

I was telling Jon on Saturday that my favorite part of being a parent was showing Brenden how to do something and watching him get it. The above forementioned poop sign is one example. He has a tough time with the "L" sound so I was showing him how to stick his tongue between his teeth and make a voiced noise and he got that too (he still can't combine it with words yet so light is still "wagh"). He can operate the DVD player quite well though I do have to discourage him from touching the disks after he eats warm, gooey chocolate chip cookies. After I chase him down and attack him with a warm washcloth it's okay though.