High: Spontaneous ‘I love you Mama’

Low: Pulling out the 6th and last pair of clean underwear and pants for the day during potty training (and yes, the dryer has been broken for over a month…)

High: Excited exclamation from the back seat as Zach is driving past a speed reader “39! Mama, that’s 39!” (yep, the number on the reader was 39 – no clue how that happened…)

Low: Ear piercing screeching in public places while spread flat on his stomach (i.e. Olive Garden, Boston Museum of Science, etc…)

High: Happily playing with his brother for nearly an hour!

Low: REFUSING to let anyone except Mama comfort him (which is simultaneously sweet, but sad because this ‘phase’ has been lasting for over a year now…)

High: Getting closer to potty trained!

Low: Still going through 1-2 pair of underwear and pants every day (the shoes are slightly more problematic)

High: The mimicking is just so adorable ‘Have good dreams Parker’; ‘Have good dreams Mama’

Low: He figured out how to properly use the word nuts. ‘You drive me nuts Mama’ or (loud Parker sigh) ‘Them dinosaurs drive me nuts Xander’ (yep, it’s really tough to keep a straight face when he says this stuff)

High: Regardless of the day I’ve had, or the day he’s had, when I walk in the door at day care I am always greeted with a running hug and the biggest smile ever.  Hand’s down one of the best parts of my day (who doesn’t love it when someone is happy to see you?)

He’s my high/low kid.  The highs totally make the lows worth it and I wouldn’t want him to be any other way.

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He never looked back

Today was Xander’s first day of kindergarten.  We were prepared.  We’d been to the open house, we’d toured and visited the school and had endless conversations with Xander about what to expect.  We had plans for before and after school.  Supplies were purchased, clothes were ironed, backpacks were packed, forms were completed.  Last night near midnight though, I couldn’t stop the tears.  My baby was going to get on a bus, go to a school where I do not know every child and every adult.  He was going to spend his day with these people who barely knew him, and couldn’t possibly be prepared for his shyness.  And I was sure his shyness would prevent him from making friends, or from letting his teacher see how smart he truly is.

But, as I should have learned by now, my kids continue to surprise me.  Adding to my regular dose of motherhood guilt, I could not drop off or pick up Xander on his first day.  Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene threw off all of our plans, so PSU student move-in day landed on the same day as kindergarten started.

So, we jumped right into the regular routine.  Zach took the boys to the bus stop, and waited with Xander.  Parker was seriously unimpressed that Xander not only got to ride the school bus and he did not, but also that Xander was not walking into ‘school’ with him anymore.  After bouncing around with his backpack, lunch box and friend, the bus arrived and they both walked right on – never looking back.

It was worse than pulling teeth, but after much begging, I finally got some details out of the close-lipped kid tonight.  Riding the bus is his favorite part.  Pretty much everything else pales in comparison to that.  But, if he had to pick something he enjoyed most at school, that would be recess.  And, if he had to pick something in his classroom that he liked the most, that would be the science station.  He really wanted to play with the dinosaurs, but at free play only two kids are allowed at each station, and there were already two kids at the dinosaur station.

There were no tears and no complaints.  He met all of his friends (his whole class) though he doesn’t yet remember anyone’s name.  He has three other students who sit at his table (where his assigned seat is) but one girl is in the half day program, so she leaves early.  One boy at his table got in trouble today for yelling at another kid (but not him) and had to sit at his table for two minutes.  Rest time is nice, and Xander thinks I should ask my boss for a rest time at work.  I’m sure that will go over well.

So, Xander is clearly more ready for kindergarten than I am.  He went through the first day like it was nothing.  I’m not sure I’m ready for day two, but he can’t wait to go back (and ride the bus again of course).  Obviously not every day can be wonderful, but I am so incredibly relieve that the first day was.

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So, we celebrated.  Lots of people came and it was a great afternoon.  Pretty hot, but not bad in the shade.  Parker got his cake (which was really his primary focus for the day) and wound up with some really fun toys.  He is finally getting to an age where he has friends that he likes to play with, and a few of them came – it was great to see him playing so well with them.  Making this little boy happy was totally worth the 7+ hours of cleaning I did along with the 4-ish hours we drove to have a free day to clean, plus all of the hours in the hot sun Zach spent working in the yard.  We always say parties are a good excuse to make sure your house is really clean…

He is a stereotypical two year old, fiercely independent one minute, and desperate to cling to my leg the next.  His speech is getting better and better by the day, and the things he says are so freaking cute, most people can’t help but mimic everything he says – we’re guilty of it too, but if I were him, I’d be sick of people copying me by now…  Just recently he’s been in to ‘singing’ his A,B,C’s but can only do it if he’s watching someone and mimicking them (oh, the irony).  He can count to 16, but won’t do it anytime we want to show off his new skill of course.  He tries his hardest to keep up with his older brother and manages to succeed most of the time.  His imagination is phenomenal and he can play make believe with his brother for lengthy periods of time.  I am still the favorite, but sometimes Dad can kiss a boo-boo.  And he melts my heart every day when he calls out ‘I love you Mommy’ as I’m walking out the door.  He doesn’t always make it easy, but I’m still head over heels in love with this little guy.

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He loves to be in the water, and refuses to get out even after his teeth are chattering and his lips match his blue swim suit.  He is so close to having the confidence to swim unassisted – if only we had more time to spend in the water…

He is very excited about Kindergarten, but I’m not sure his mind has fully wrapped around the huge changes in his life happening in 4 short weeks…

He is still my shy guy, and takes a long time to warm up to strangers and still refuses to speak when people he doesn’t know are watching him.

He is however a very sweet brother and friend.

He is still planning to marry Katie and have four children with her, though the names keep changing.  He’ll give you answers to any questions about his future plans – the kid has their entire life planned out already.

Even though he’ll be 5 faster than I am ready for, he still likes to cuddle and will once-in-a-blue-moon wind up snuggled next to me in bed in the middle of the night.  When I ask him the next morning why he got in my bed, the answer is sometimes ‘I just needed some more cuddles Mama’  I am happy to accommodate that request any time.

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Your preschool must be one of the most fabulous preschools on earth.  The amount of effort and preparation the entire staff and students put into the event truly shows how much they care and love your class.  From the large framed picture of what you want to be when you grow up (a paleontologist of course) to the gift bag, to the book with personal messages from each of your teachers to the CD with pictures of your class throughout the 4 years you’ve been there – all amazingly wonderful.

You are also amazingly wonderful – and I’m not the only one who thinks that.  The evidence is in the book, where every message from your teacher refers to you as a sweet, kind, smart child who is happy to play with everyone.

Your current love/obsession is dinosaurs.  I’ve learned more about dinosaurs from you and trying to keep up with you than I ever thought I would want or need to know.

You are currently this wonderful mix of an adorably sweet little boy who thinks about dinosaurs about 90% of his day and a kid who is still little in a few ways.  You still like help getting dressed even though we all know that you can do it on your own and have been able to for years now.  Every few months you still wake up in the night and crawl into bed beside me, and I don’t make you leave because I cherish those cuddles – I know they will become more and more scarce in the coming years (although you can’t seem to believe that yet).

You know all of your letters and numbers and enjoy doing addition and subtraction on your hands.  You like to write, but some of your letters still give you a little trouble, and adding the extra tails to your small a’s and to the tops of your small n’s is still super cute, though I expect/hope that kindergarten will help you get those figured out.

I am so excited to see your next milestones – to see you play organized sports, to make new friends, to start at a new school in the fall and I have to keep reminding myself that despite your smarts and excitement, you are still the youngest child in your class and some of the things might be more of a challenge for you.  Don’t worry though, your father and I will be there to help, support and cheer you on the whole way.  It is bittersweet to see my squishy little baby shed his baby-ness and grow up.

Congratulations little man – we love you so very much!

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Parker and Xander are both sleeping in their own beds in their own rooms through the night.  We get an occasional visit from Xander and Parker is usually up before the sun asking me what I’m doing, but I can’t really complain.

This is what the wine storage rack looks like on my kitchen island.  What does yours look like?

Xander and I had an entertaining conversation the other day:

X: I’m going to get married when I’m 18

Me: 18 huh?  Don’t you think you might want to wait a few years? You never know who you might meet.

X: (very matter-of-factly) But I’ve already picked!

Me: Oh really, who did you pick?

X: Katie.

Me: And did Katie pick you?

X: Yep.

Me: Well, what if you meet someone else in Kindergarten?

X: I won’t meet anyone in Kindergarten.

Me: What if you meet someone in 1st grade?

X: I won’t meet anyone in 1st grade.

Me: What if you meet someone in high school?

X: I won’t meet anyone in high school Mama.

Me: What if you meet someone in college?  I met Daddy in college.

Long pause

X: Ok, I’ll wait until college and then pick.

Me: What if that person doesn’t pick you?

X: Then I’ll marry Katie.

So that’s my 4 year old with his life all figured out.  Here is his Christmas list:

• A Christmas tree for Parker’s room
• A small (miniature) tree for his room
• A house for his trains (no, not a train station – a house where he can take the trains apart and put them.  It’s a picture he has in his head…)

We’ve gotten the tree for Parker’s room taken care of, so I’ll be spending the next week or so trying to figure out how to creatively find a house for trains.

Oh, and try not to leave your step ladder up when hanging Christmas decorations or this might happen:

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“If only he could talk” Zach will sometimes say.  And we’ll wonder (and hope) that our son’s frustrations at the world will begin to abate as his ability to communicate improves.  He’s got a few words now.  He’s been able to say cat for ages.  Of course Mama and Dada.  He still hasn’t figured out any form of Xander or brother, but that will come.  He learned “uh oh” from his best friend at school and like to use that one regularly.

This week Parker has figured out “go” and uses it all the time – usually while someone is holding him – he’ll gesture in the direction he wants and say “go”.  Sometimes this works for him, and other times we tell him no (which drives him nuts).

He also can say “no” but usually when he says it, he means “yes” which can make for a rather confusing conversation if you’re not up on Parker lingo.  He’s getting better at communicating, even non-verbally.  These days he can walk up to you with a sippy cup and utter something entirely incomprehensible while holding up the cup and you say “oh, you’d like some more milk?” and take his cup, and now he won’t have a complete meltdown in the middle of the kitchen.  He’ll just smile up at you and wait (somewhat) patiently for you to fulfill his request.  Slowly but surely we’re making progress, and it’s making everyone in our house happier.

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After this, I asked the teacher what I should do.  Her response was vague – he didn’t actually bite, so they didn’t have a “no biting” discussion.  He’s not even 18 months yet, so lengthy discussions don’t work.  I let her know I was open to any suggestions, that we were trying everything we could think of and would try anything anyone else could think of.

I asked my mother-in-law and sister-in-law what they thought.  They have over 50 years of parenting experience combined, so I thought between all of the kids and grandkids maybe they would have come across this sort of situation before.  My mother-in-law talked about a friend of the family who used to bite her older brother when she was little.  Eventually the mother encouraged the boy to bite her back.  He did, and the biting stopped.  I thought that biting back wasn’t an approved solution, but I could be wrong.  This wasn’t exactly biting back either, since it was the brother who bit, not a parent…

I asked our pediatrician.  He said this behavior is normal, and that we should just keep doing what we’re doing.

Then last night Parker bit me.  Hard.  Hard enough to draw blood.  We were playing on the floor after dinner.  He was getting pretty rough, so I wrapped him in my arms and told him that hands were for hugs, not hitting.  While I hugged him, he bit me.  After I had pulled him off, and recovered from the surprise, I tried to explain to Parker that he hurt Mommy.  That we don’t bite, etc. but he was too riled up to listen to any words coming out of my mouth.

So, anyone who happens to stumble across this blog: How do you teach a 15-month-old not to bite?  Furthermore, how do you teach this particular 15-month-old boy to please, please be a little more gentle?

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Parker's current favorite: Cornelius P. Mud, Are You Ready For Bed?

Parker is in love with books.  He show little interest in other toys at the moment and instead prefers to carry around a book – mostly any book will do.  If he happens to see you wander by while he’s carrying a book, he beelines to you and holds up the book with this pleading look in his eye and only someone with superhuman strength can say “no, I can’t ready you that book right now” which means that we have been reading lots and lots of board books in our house lately.  It’s adorably cute.  We were thrilled when Xander reached this phase – for a long time the only “toys” we had in our living room was just a bookcase overflowing with all of his favorites.  It’s great to get back here and have lots of cuddling and reading time with the little guy

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