For an almost-two-year old boy who is obsessed with zoo animals, you just can’t get enough time at your favorite place. Yes, we went back to the zoo this week, and yes, he loved it just as much as the first time. I swear I have heard the word “Baboon” at least 5000 times, as Jack relates to me how much he adores this weird and sometimes scary animal.

Here you can see the large male Baboon approaching the glass.















A few seconds later he put his face right next to Jack and scared the sound right out of him. I didn’t get a photo because I was laughing too hard. He came back for another look, and of course for an opportunity to smile for the camera:















On that particular day I learned why so few of Jack’s clothes are white. He was filthy. I took him to the store and was embarrassed at the way he looked – almost as if I told him to use his shirt to wipe off his face all day long.

Another day this week we visited a local park. It is on the way home from his school, and since the weather is cooling off we spend as much time outside as we can. Here he was watching a bunch of older children play tag.















He tried to go join in:















But a little girl ended up knocking him over. He decided from then on to watch the fun from afar. He found a safe place out of their way to hang out:




























Today was quite a day for both of us. I took Jack to school this morning a little later than normal, and by noon I got a call that his allergies were bothering him again. His eyes were itchy and he was crying. By the time I got there, however, he was asleep. Looking back I should have just left him asleep and gotten him after his nap, but I thought I could get him to the car without waking him up.

Unfortunately, if he falls asleep even a tiny bit it completely ruins his napping. And his schedule is pretty much set now – he falls asleep at noon and gets up at two, and there’s no arguing with him. So he woke up when we got to the car, and wasn’t in any mood to go back to sleep. But he was so tired he didn’t know what to do with himself at home. So I dragged him off to the library, where at least he could run around and be distracted.

He started with the phone bank. I think the idea is that the kid sits here and listens to someone read a book, but usually Jack just picks up the phone and pretends like he’s having a conversation with the lady on the other end.















Then he went to play outside, and spent some time going in and out of this door:

























There are many rules at the kid’s library, fortunately opening and closing the door repeatedly is not forbidden.

Next he found a chair that was just his height and surveyed the scene. I think he looks so grown up here:















Just like his mom, he’s learning to multi-task. He’s got a book in one hand and a pen in the other.















It was a long day for both of us. Without a nap he was quite edgy – the smallest inconvenience would set him off. Luckily my parents stopped by and entertained us both for a while, or we may not have made it through the day.

The good news is he went to bed at seven. This is the earliest he has been to bed in weeks – typically we haven’t been able to get him to sleep before nine or so, which is far later than Dr. Weissbluth suggests.

Tomorrow he goes to visit Grandma Gloria and Grandpa Tom and of course Blondi. Joe and I will be resting in our quiet house. Too bad we can’t send the dogs away too!