The Little Guy has come and gone. It's always sort of sad and empty in the house after he leaves. No more jumping on the bed, no more laughter at high volumes just because it's even funnier that way, no more making farting noises with your armpit. Nope. When the kid goes, it supposedly time to go back to being an adult.
Sometimes when The Little Guy is here, I get a little annoyed at The Boy. You have to understand that The Boy is a workaholic, and if he spends 15 minutes away from his computer, it's a freakin' miracle. So of course, after spending the day going to Belgium, picking up The Little Guy, missing the train, spending the night in Belgium, and then coming back the following morning, well... he really wanted to work. That's fine and all, I like hanging out with his son, but sometimes I think, "Why did you want to bring him here if you're not going to chill with him?" If we don't plan activities OUTSIDE of the house, The Boy is just going to stay glued to the machine.
So we went to go see "Robots" which was funny enough. Good for little kids, plus we got a cinematic version of the Happy Meal: popcorn, drink, and toy. It was a watch.
Last night, while The Boy was working, I started knitting. The Little Guy asked me if he could learn, too. We pulled out the dictionnaries and I started explaining. Within an hour, The Little Guy was knitting pretty well, much to The Boy's disdain. "Little Guy! That's for women!"
I just had to laugh and laugh at his machissimo.
He did make the valid point, "Have you ever seen a man knit?" Well, no, but that doesn't mean 8-year-old boys can't learn, right?
The Little Guy really took to the knitting, and he kept asking me to teach him more. So after he had done four solid rows of knitting, I taught him to perl. Then I taught him to add colors. Granted, his little hands had a hard time with the needles, so he improvised and did the whole thing with one needle between his knees... hey, it worked.
This morning, before the two of them headed out for their train, I showed him how to bind off and weave in ends. Then he started putting on his mini-scarf, and rubbing the soft wool on his neck.
Dad really did not approve, but I thought it was great. He was so proud of what he had done. I was pretty proud of him, too.
It's amazing how quickly kids pick things up. He learned how to do all the major knitting techniques in 24 hours. Just... boom! We set up a system where each stich required four steps, and so when he had a problem with one of them, he would say, "Problem! Three!" and I would see where he went wrong. It's great to see how we get around language barriers.
Hurrahhh!
As silly as this may sound, I am so proud of you and the little guy. Teaching someone to knit with no language in common isn't easy, but is, without fail, a ball of laughs.
In response to The Boy's machismo: I have taught men to knit, seen men knit, and had a few conversations with business men who are really into it. Next time you see The Little Guy you'll have to tell him that a man who knits can be a real turn on! Granted, I have no idea how you could get that across without words and in an appropriate fashion to a pre-adolescent. Step Five: Bat your eyelashes, wink and smile, purse your lips, and, of course, keep those fingers moving.
That? is quite possibly the cutest thing I've ever heard.
Just tell Daddio how many girls the little guy will be able to pick up with his mad knitting skillz.
That is so cute!