My Experiences as a Father... May 5 to June 4, 2001 (25th month)

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Monday, June 4, 2001
Jill's feet-dragging with picking the name of the new baby is getting even more interesting.  Now Maeve is saying that the baby will be named "Lilka" when she is born.  That had been a favorite of mine, but Maeve never liked it.  Now we have to get Maeve to stop using "Hadley" and "Lilka".  Jill can't figure out where Maeve got the idea the baby should be called "Lilka", since Maeve didn't like it the few times we suggested it to her.
 

Sunday, June 3, 2001
Jill has been trying to get me to accept Hadley as the new baby's name, just because that is what Maeve has decided it would be.  I told Jill that she had until tonight to pick something that would meet the original criteria, or I would pick the name myself.  Jill consulted with lots of books and friends, and we finally have a name: Hilde Austin Perrin.  Hilde is a German name that means, "Battle Woman", and Austin is my grandfather's name.

I explained to Maeve that sometimes babies have one name before they are born, and another after.  For instance, we were calling Maeve "Jacques" until we knew she was a girl.
 

Friday, June 1, 2001
Maeve and I went out for a walk tonight and saw a lawnmower that was next to a snow blower with a "Free" sign.  I thought the lawnmower was free, but I thought I should ask to make sure.  I told Maeve that she would have to be cute when the people came to the door, to help get the mower.
 

Tuesday, May 29, 2001
I got a card today from a consulting company that wanted me to enter a contest.  There was a picture of a race car on the front, and when you opened it, it was a musical card.  However, instead of playing music, the card had the sound of a race car.  I gave it to Maeve, and she kept running around, opening and closing it to listen to the sound.
 

Sunday, May 27, 2001
Maeve and I watched some of the Indy 500 today.  This is the third year that we have seen it.  Whenever the cars would go into the pits, she would point out that they were fixing the cars.  She liked them replacing the entire front wing and nose cone of Andretti's car.  She said the noise was like a motorcycle race, and they were going around and around like a motorcycle race.
 

Saturday, May 26, 2001
Maeve has always been good about using my hankie to wipe her nose, and she even blows her nose well.  She also likes my hankies.  She had them all over, and I kept running out.  Maeve and I went to a store and got her some of her own.  She got some with a big "M", and others in pretty colors, like fuchsia.  She likes those better, and I get mine back.
 

Friday, May 25, 2001
I often have to retrieve dolls from around the house that Maeve wants to sleep with.  I usually have them peek into the room, and then pull them out quickly.  Maeve will sit on the bed and giggle while she watches their heads stick in and out of the doorway.  Tonight she told Jill and I to sit on the bed, and she took her dolls outside the room to have them peek in for us.
 

Thursday, May 24, 2001
Jill painted her toenails blue, and Maeve wanted her toenails to be blue also.  Jill painted Maeve's toenails, too.  When we read books, Maeve kept putting her feet up to the books to compare blue things (like bugs or cars) with her blue toenails.
 

Monday, May 21, 2001
Maeve walked to the backyard and I went to keep an eye on her.  When I did, I saw a skunk in the large wooded area behind our house.  I picked Maeve up and pointed out the skunk.  She first identified it as a kitty, and wanted to pet it.  I explained that it was a skunk, and it would make you stinky if you tried to pet it.  Jill had told Maeve about skunks earlier in the week when they drove by a dead one.

The dog from next door came over, and I asked Maeve is Sam should go get the skunk.  She told Sam to go get it, but Sam was confused; she was looking for food from us.
 

Saturday, May 19, 2001
I usually call Jill "Mom" around Maeve.  Jill usually calls me "Daniel".  Maeve has started saying, "Daniel" in Jill's exasperated tone.  If Maeve needs something fixed, or wants me to come to her room, she runs around saying, "Daniel, Daniel, Daniel..."
 

Wednesday, May 16, 2001
Jill had told Maeve to "hit your father in the head" when Jill got frustrated with me.  Jill had Maeve in the backpack while she was vacuuming, and Maeve started hitting Jill with her cup.  Maeve thought it was funny, but Mom had to explain that it was wrong to hit my head; instead Maeve should "pat" people's heads.
 

Monday, May 14, 2001
Jill accused me of not having any imagination because I don't understand eating pretend food that Maeve has prepared me.  I said I have an imagination; it's just different.  For instance, when the neighbor girl asked about the spray foam insulation that I put around the faucet outside, I would have said there was a monster in our walls.  We killed it, but this goo is its blood and it oozed out of every opening in the walls.  When she asked if Jill had killed the bushes when she pruned them, I would have said that I did kill them, but their ghosts are still around.  Sometimes they will move around the yard at night and scratch at our windows.
 

Saturday, May 12, 2001
Tonight Maeve and I went to get Mother's Day cards.  There was one aisle with a guy and his kids, so Maeve and I went into the aisle with no one else.  I don't like to let Maeve root through cards on her own if other people are waiting.  So I got a card for Jill, and Maeve insisted on getting two.

At home, I had finished signing my card, and one of Maeve's was done.  Then I noticed that we had gotten birthday cards instead of Mother's Day cards.  I guess that is why the other aisle was more crowded.
 

Friday, May 11, 2001
Jill was sorting out clothes that Maeve had outgrown.  She told Maeve that clothes which are too small for Maeve will go to Hadley.  Maeve started making two piles, saying, "Maeve, Hadley, Maeve, Hadley, ..."
 

Wednesday, May 9, 2001
Jill came back from our neighbor's house tonight and said that they had a huge backyard.  I said we have a huge backyard too, but it is mostly trees, and the pool.  I got out the lot plan and showed Jill how big it was.  She started coming up with plans to clear it all out, saying, "I'll be darned if my yard is that big and I don't use it."
 

Monday, May 7, 2001
The cat and dog from next door roamed into our yard today.  Maeve had been picking up handfuls of dirt and rocks, so I told her that cats and dogs like to eat dirt.  Maeve started throwing handfuls of dirt at the dog.  I ended up telling her that they don't really eat dirt, but it was fun to see her throwing stuff at them.
 

Sunday, May 6, 2001
Maeve has started being polite.  I think she had been saying, "Please", but this weekend she added, "Thank you" and "You're welcome".  She even said, "Bless you" when I sneezed.
 


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