Ethan's Show and Tell

Ethan LOVES doing Show and Tells. This is somewhat surprising to us given he hates participating in the big class productions they put on a couple of times a year and had an anxiety attack in front of everyone at the Christmas concert. It must have something to do with large crowds and/or knowing his audience. At any rate, Show and Tells are a different story and the countdown to the next one begins the day after he's done one (they come around every 6 weeks or so). His teacher always specifies that she doesn't care what they bring (even if it's a repeat) but is adamant that the kids choose the item themselves. Since Leah's birth Ethan has been asking to take her as his Show and Tell. Due to logistics, today was the first day that was feasible and Ethan was so excited he had trouble sleeping last night.

School begins with 15 to 20 minutes of "fine motor practice" where the kids pick from various pre-determined activities like painting, playdoh, puzzles, writing, dots-to-dots etc. which they do until all the students have arrived. This is usually all Josh sees Ethan do at school so today was an equally exciting day for him because he got his first taste of preschool. Ethan took Josh under his wing and they both went to the playdoh table. They then played beanbag toss until it was finally time for everyone to sit on the carpet (which Ethan assured Josh was "super comfy" and had him come sit beside him). The kids sang the "Days of the Week" song (which Josh was thrilled with because Ethan had already taught it to him) and then it was time for Ethan to head to the front of the class.

The structure is the same every day. They do the calendar first, where Ethan counts in French up to the day of the month and then he picks out what the weather is like outside (there wasn't a "FLIPPIN' COLD" category so he opted for "windy"). He then writes his name on the blackboard followed by his phone number. The class is then handed a writing board and they all practice writing Ethan's name and phone number as well. Josh got a little frustrated at first and announced to the class "I don't know how", but gave it a good effort anyway.

Finally it was Show and Tell time and Ethan's teacher, Mrs. Eager, asked him what he had brought. He pointed to Leah and she suggested he also "show" Joshua. Both boys loved this suggestion and Josh bounded up to the front to join his brother. I sat on a chair holding Leah and Ethan started. I had given my camera to Ethan's other teacher, Mrs. Duncan, to take a video but unfortunately I hadn't set it up properly so we don't have it documented (UGH, what a bummer!). I'll do my best to relay everything while it's still fresh in my mind. Picture a very serious and matter-of-fact Ethan:

Ethan: "This is my brother Josh. QUESTIONS???"
Mrs. Eager: "Can you tell us a bit more about Josh before you take questions?"
Ethan: "We play together. QUESTIONS???"
Kid: "Where do you keep it?"
Mrs. Eager: "Now children, you must think about what you're going to ask. Ethan brought PEOPLE with him, not a toy. You'll have to come up with different questions than the usual ones you ask."
Kid: "Why are there stripes on his shirt?"
Ethan: "Because that's how it's made."
Kid: "What's his favourite thing at the playground?"
Ethan: "Sometimes he likes the slide. Sometimes he don't."
Mrs. Eager: "Sometimes he doesn't."
Kid: "If he falls down on the slide does he cry?"
Ethan: "He doesn't fall down on the slide."
Kid: "Does he cry a lot?"
Ethan: "Yes"
Kid: "Do you sleep together?"
Ethan: "We sleep in the same room. We have different beds."
Kid: "What's his favourite colour?"
Ethan: "Josh what's your favourite colour?"
Josh: "Um um um um um um um um um RED"
Kid: "What's his favourite toy?"
Ethan: "Me"
Mrs. Eager: "Joshua, do you have a favourite toy besides Ethan?"
Josh: "Um um um um um um um um um the car table"
Kid: "What do you play?"
Ethan: "Sometimes we play outside. Sometimes I play outside alone. Josh gets cold and cries."
Mrs. Eager: "Ok, let's move on to your little sister Ethan."
Ethan: "This is my little sister. QUESTIONS???"
Mrs. Eager: "Ethan, how about you tell us her name."
Ethan: "Her name is Leah. QUESTIONS???"
Kid: "How old is she?"
Ethan: "She is zero but also 3 months."
Kid: "Can she play with you?"
Ethan: "She looks at me. I look at her."
Kid: "Why do you look at her?"
Ethan: "Because I want to."
Kid: "What else does she look at?"
Ethan: "Scooby Doo is too scary for her. She likes Cars. She likes Dinoco and Lightning McQueen. She doesn't like Wiki Tikis."
Kid: "Does she cry a lot?"
Ethan: "Yes"
Kid: "Does she eat food?"
Ethan: "Not yet. My Mommy gives her milk from here" (at which point I get jabbed in the right boob)
Kid: "Why is her shirt pink?"
Ethan: "Because that's how it's made."
Kid: "Does she only wear pink shirts?"
Ethan: "No she has other colours."
Kid: "Does she have teeth?"
Ethan: "No"

At this point all the kids started comparing all of their younger siblings and Leah started to fuss so we wrapped it up. All the kids clapped and Ethan was SOOOOO proud of himself. It was all I could do to drag Josh out of there - he's been talking about little else since and can't wait to start preschool when he turns 3. When Ethan got home he asked me the standard question, "When is it my show and tell again?" After I told him we'd have to wait for the April calendar to come home from school, he announced that he already knows what he wants to take... "MOMMY!!" (Incidentally, Daddy was Ethan's first-ever show and tell when he was 3).

So in other news, Leah continues to grow like a weed and hit milestones. The home scale puts her around 13 pounds and she's now laughing and communicating with various grunts and coos. She loves her mobile and has started using an exersaucer, but is not a big fan of the Bumbo yet. We've finally found a church we like and are having her baptised on Easter Sunday.

Until next time...