Language Development

Good morning. For most of you, it's Wednesday. To me, it's Monday. The wife just finished up three days off and is back on day shift. And that means I have my two little treasures all to myself from about 7:45 a.m. until about 6:30 p.m.

Let's see, where did we leave off? Right, poker. Well, I'm down to 20 cents of my $5 gift from PokerStars. That means I can play in two more of the 10-cent tournaments before I return to the land of play-money poker. But I gotta tell you, the real money games are so much better. People are serious about the game. You don't get these idiots going all-in with 2-7 off suit. You don't get the bingo poker players - the ones who just go all-in, all the time.

If I manage to win one of the last two 10-cent games, first prize is a little more than $8. That's my ticket back to the $2.20 tournaments, where first place gets more than $500. Keep your fingers crossed for me. Daddy needs a big-screen.

In other news, Sontoo celebrated his first birthday Sunday. I'm sure he has no idea what it all means, but he got to coat himself in chocolate cake and icing, so in his mind, I'm sure, it's all good. He is now officially walking as well. And that means he gets into trouble just a little quicker than before. He has also discovered that things thrown down the basement stairs make fun noises. So he's practicing his new-found walking skills by carrying various items from the living room to the top of the basement stairs, throwing them down, laughing and returning to the living room to find something just a little bigger. He is also anxious to keep the education process going by mastering the stairs - scary. They are hard wood and there are 11 of them.

As for Sonwun, his language skills are developing at an alarming rate, as is his sense of right, wrong, fair and unfair. His language skills are a constant reminder that I must redouble efforts to curb my more colourful adjectives. Last week, when I sent the our Golden Retriever out of the room for misbehaving with the cat, he shook his head as the dog made its exit and muttered, "Fucking dog."

Yes, I'm embarrassed. But I give myself credit for assuming a proper look of horror and not laughing.

His idea of sharing needs a little work as well. Right now, his philosophy on the toys in the house is: What's yours is mine and what's mine is mine. The toy I want is the one you are playing with. We're working on it.

Oh, by the way, I obviously don't write this all in one sitting. And in the break between these last two paragraphs, Sontoo has discovered Daddy's case of beer by the fridge. And guess what? A can of Budweiser makes a really cool noise when you drop it down the basement stairs.

Anyway, tonight is gym night, and I must be going. Will let you know how it goes.