Akello's Christmas Wish List

at the capitol tree lighting this year.

wow,

while i was titling this blog, i immediatley began to stop, go back, and change the word "christmas" for the word "holiday", and then i realized i wasnt at school anymore and could say what i wanted to. So merry xmas everybody! Prepare Ye the way!



So lets talk about akello and his language development and memory. He has a great memory and is very good and putting two and two together. He saw the cover of the ironman dvd in the living room and said, "hey! we bought that at the store!" He hadnt seen it in weeks.



one day akello said, "thats the cd we listened to with mama.!" i paused and looked at the row of cd's. Akello saw my puzzled look and said, REMEMBER DAD!"

I busted out laughing pretty hard after that. Theresa and i are both happy that he has lifted sanctions on us singing. Anytime we would start singing along with him or just humming a tune he would get infuriated. "no daddy! no singing! i sing!"

now he has asked us to sing songs or join him in song. so that nice.


akello lighting the advent candles

We have had many people inquire about want kind of gifts would be cool for a two-year old, in particular, Akello.

We appreciate the consideration and first of all want you to know that less is more. We try not to have to many toys out for Akello but it is nice to rotate every few weeks/month so that he maintains fresh interest and appreciation for his belongings.

We love anything that encourages hands-on, concentrated and/or active type of learning. We try our best to avoid electronic toys. these tend to be too overstimulating and often provide little or no opportunity for the child to use his/her imagination and thought process.


akello goes for the juice at einsteins bagels (our weekend hang)

We also steer clear of anything related to popular and overly commercialized characters (PLEASE no superhereos, no Dora and no Diego). We prefer toys made of natural materials (not plastic) and while Little Tikes and Fisher Price are uber popular for this age-group, the opportunity to work with wooden materials can give the
child a sense of appreciation and connection as to where something comes from and how it was created. Akello LOVES books and we always welcome adding more to his library however, we try our best to avoid fantastical story lines with themes to unrealistic for him to grasp as well as books that have animal characters that dress-up, walk and talk like human beings.


akello putting away his groceries. the bottom shelf is akellos shelf and anything for him is put down there so that he can get his food on his own. here he has ammassed a tower of yogurts.

We love books that are quite often non-fiction and there are many great books out there with people characters that he could easily relate to and understand. Well those are the ins and outs of our gift giving criteria.


aunt mona stops by for a visit

You might be thinking, those crazy Montessori people, but we want you to know the gifts aren't the important aspect of this holiday and we will encourage that in how we raise Akello. Most of all it will be wonderful to see and spend time with as many of you as we can during the holidays. Good times with family and friends celebrating the blessings of what Christmas means can be the greatest gifts of all.



or a drumset for akello. ha! no just kidding, friends and family visits, really

(drumset link here...)
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4184087&findingMethod=rr


We have however provided a wishlist for those of you still interested in getting Akello a little something, something.

below to view the Wish list:
http://www.toysrus.com/wishlist/search/index.jsp?_eventId=detail&searchBy=&wishlistId=4660818

You can also make purchases from this Wish List at any one of our retail stores. Just remember to bring the following information:

Creator: AKELLO GARCIA and GIL GARCIA
Gift Recipient: AKELLO GARCIA
Event Type: Christmas
Wish List #: 4660818

*Please remember to print a fresh copy of the Wish list when you visit a store to prevent duplicate purchases. Also make sure you present your printout during checkout so that this Wish List is updated correctly.

thanks,