Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Learning With Dumbledad

"I have a cape like Super Lukie!"

When you are a 3 year old like Lukas, every day is chock full of golden opportunities to learn new and interesting things about the big, fascinating world around you. 

And as parents Mrs. LIAYF and I take joy in converting every opportunity that presents itself into a learning experience for him.  We read him multiple books each day, try to answer all of his "why" questions with well thought out explanations, engage him in conversations about his day, and attempt to expose him to new and interesting experiences that will foster his cognitive and emotional development. 

All that being said, he seems like a pretty bright kid, so therefore I figure we must be doing a relatively decent job of not screwing him up with our efforts.

But the extent of his learning doesn't stop there.  Not by any means.  For instance he is also the star pupil and currently the only enrollee in what could be considered our very own school of goofiness. It's kind of like Hogwarts if you replaced the witchcraft and wizardry part with silliness and goofballery. You could call it Laughwarts. Which I guess that would make me his Prof. Dumbledad.

I say this because not a day goes by where we are not goofing around with Lukas, making him laugh, teasing him, tickling him, making strange voices, or flashing him goofy looks at him for laughs.  Thankfully, these tricks usually work. The end result is that we don't end up taking life too seriously.  And we kid around and laugh.  Often.  I'd like to think we (mostly me really) are also teaching him some good life lessons by having this fun.

And so far I have been impressed with Lukas' study habits here at Laughwarts. They seem to be paying off nicely.  For example, just the other day I was getting breakfast together while Mrs. LIAYF was readying Lukas for school.  It was taking them a while, so I paused and walked to the living room to see if I could hear if they were on their way. 

That's when Lukas suddenly jumped out from behind the wall with a roar, completely surprising me.  Startled, I jumped back defensively. Pleased with his own efforts, he proceeded to laugh uncontrollably at that one.
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Ah yes, the comedic force is strong in this one.

Personally, I love all this fun we have.  I am a natural goofball, and being a dad has given me the outlet to keep things around Casa LIAYF loose and light.  And although my little guy is progressing nicely with his training here, he is now where near ready to graduate to the big leagues.  Rest assured Dumbledad still has a few tricks and secrets up his sleeve left to teach.

Maybe even a whole chamber of them.

image by Mr Spielbrick from Flickr.com, CC-BY

12 comments:

The Momma said...

Laughwarts DOES get the highest scores on their standardized testing--you know, knock knock jokes, pranks, gigglefests, and laughathons.

Seems like a great place to go to school!

krellpw said...

We serve silly berries and goofy-juice at our home and it's nearly alarming how often the kids become trapped in Daddy's tickle tunnel due to unexplained "accidental" cave-ins. So I applaud your commitment to general fun and silliness.

My wife and I are firm believers that there are very few situations that are totally absent of humor. It may take time to remove oneself from the situation to find it, but in general, if you scratch a bit, it's there.

All of that to say that a healthy sense of humor is critical to the well-being and development of children. Congratulations for recognizing and fostering it.

Didactic Pirate said...

Except for the part where Laughwarts sounds like a disease something you contract from dirty kids at school who don't bathe, I love this post. Clearly, there's much good, healthy goofiness in the LIAYF household. Very nice.

Captain Dumbass said...

Whoa! I was about to comment when I noticed Lukas' astronaut outfit on the post below. I'm jealous. Do they have adult versions? Like not made by NASA and costing more than my car.

What?

James (SeattleDad) said...

@The Momma - Yes, we pride ourselves in our first class comedic education. We are even looking to add another pupil.

@krellpw - I like your philosophy. We are that way too. It is said that laughing everyday extends your life. I believe that 100%.

@Didactic - Haha, yeah it does sound kind of nasty doesn't it. At least if you have em, you can laugh about it.

@Captain - We didn't look, but I'm sure if you fork over enough cash you could get a replica anything. This, however, didn't set us back too much. He did wear it to the Museum of Flight here in Seattle and stood by the mock up of the Space Shuttle. We got a picture and the Museum asked us for it to help in thier promotional material to try to lure one of the real shuttles here.

goodfather said...

Awesome post! I love Laughwarts! I believe in the power of laughter too, and my kids are quick to join in.

Anonymous said...

Great post, but I'm not sure I want you calling yourself dumbledad!

Diplo_Daddy said...

Making everyday a learning experience is exactly how it should be. Now prepare yourself for more “why” questions as they get older. Sometimes I feel like a walking encyclopaedia, given the amount of “why” questions I‘ve answered lately.

SciFi Dad said...

My goofball gene skipped my daughter (she's VERY serious and doesn't like silliness) and went full force into my boy. Maybe it's a Y-chromosome thing?

Otter Thomas said...

Me and my son are the same way. My wife said just yesterday he's so goofy (in a loving way of course). He's just like you. I think it's important to have fun with your kids. Life does not always have to be serioius.

And I love the name Dumbledad.

Ordinary Dad said...

One of the best things I like about being a dad, is being silly with the kids. Great post!!

James (SeattleDad) said...

@Goodfather - That is the best part of being dad, isn't it?

@Dumbledad - Sorry man! Didn't realize there was another out there. It is only for this post though. I am not usurping your title. Thanks for the comment.

@Dipplo - I am prepared. I think.

@Scifi - Perhaps, but I bet there are a lot of fathers who would argue since their girls are goofy enough.

@Otter - I think it is just as important as most other things you teach your kids. Don't take life too seriously. I want him to realize that.

@Ordinary Dad - Thanks Lee. Obviously I agree.