You’re in kindergarten now– a big boy in a big school, and even at over a month into the school year it still blows me away every single morning when I drop you off and you confidently march up to the door all by yourself. Your teacher tells me that you have adjusted very well, are well-behaved and are way ahead of most other kids in your class academically. That much isn’t a surprise to me; you’ve shown us time and time again over the years just how sweet and brilliant you are. How lucky I am to call you mine.
What did surprise me for the first time this morning, though, was a new kind of problem I haven’t dealt with explicitly as a parent yet. You told me that you don’t like music class…. and when I asked why you said that you get “embarrassed” when you have to go up in front of the other kids to play instruments (apparently it’s not just you by yourself, you guys take turns going up to do these little performances in small groups).
“Embarrased?” I asked, knowing perfectly well what the word meant and what you were probably getting at, but I wanted to hear your thought process. “Embarrassed” is an emotion I’ve of course seen you feel before, but not a word I’ve ever actually heard you say.
“I don’t want the other kids watching me! What if they see me mess up?!” you say, with panic in your eyes that are starting to well up tears.
Oh, my sweet boy. I tell you that everyone messes up sometimes, and that it’s okay. That messing up is how we learn. That the other kids won’t care if you mess up, and if they do care then they aren’t worth your energy and thoughts. I tell you an anecdote about a time the skirt of my costume fell off during a dance recital performance, and how I finished the dance with no skirt on and got a big round of applause from the audience. I watch you giggle as I tell you to imagine me on stage with my skirt falling off next time you have to play an instrument in music class. When I ask if that helps you feel better you say yes, with a bit of hesitancy and uncertainty on your face. And so we move on with our morning.
But my mama heart still hurts. We’ve entered the point in your life where I can’t really help you anymore. Now you have these big, more mature feelings and problems. I can talk to you until I’m blue in the face– giving you advice and encouragement, but at the end of the day I can’t just step in and solve your problems anymore. Instead, I have to step back and watch you solve them yourself.
And even though I know you are smart and strong and will do just fine in this great big world, it’s still such a hard thing for me to do. Plus it will only get harder as the years go by and your challenges continue to mount.
For today though, I hug & kiss you one more time… then watch you walk away through those big metal doors.
YOU. ARE. FIIIIIIIIIIIIVE. You’re actually 5 and some change now, with the maturity and smarts of a 7 or 8 year old, but I still can’t believe it. In a lot of ways it feels like I just found out we were expecting you yesterday. In even more ways, it feels like you’ve always been there. And I suppose you have– for I’ve never been without my heart or soul, and you’ve always been a part of that. There’s a popular bible verse in Jeremiah resonates with me on this particular subject: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart (Jeremiah 1:5).” Remember the very first letter I wrote to you, right when we were about to start trying for a baby? I called you a twinkle in my eye. You’re still that, and so much more.
It’s been an amazing year for you, and I’m so excited for all the things you have coming up on the horizon. Five is a really fun age– you’re reading and writing like nobody’s business, you’re making closer friendships & lots of lasting memories, you’re taking bigger risks & learning so many new things, and at your core you’re gaining a depth of feeling & understanding that forces me to begrudgingly admit that you’re not my “baby” anymore. (But who are we kidding– you’ll ALWAYS be my baby! 😉 ) As I’ve said about many other phases of parenthood thus far, it is a very bittersweet feeling.
It’s been awhile since I’ve shared a poem I wrote about you. You have a thing lately with coming into our bed at some point most nights… and honestly, I don’t mind. Not only because I know this time is fleeting, but also because it’s hard to find one-on-one quality time with each of you three on a regular basis. I’ll take it where I can get it, even if it means less sleep. I can sleep when I’m dead, right?
RIGHT?!?! My God, I’m so tired. Zzzzzzz….
Anywho, I’ve sat here for a good 10 minutes now thinking of all the amazing things you’re up to, what an awesome person you’re becoming, and how proud I am of you. But that’s lead to my getting pretty emotional, so I think I’ll let the pictures do the telling for me.
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And I’ll wrap this up by saying what pictures can’t — THANK YOU. Thank you, my sweet Alex, for making me a mother. For being the twinkle in my eye, the skip in my step, the zest that makes life worth living. Thank you for teaching me more than I can ever hope to teach you. Thank you for being the best son, big brother, and friend I can possibly imagine.
All my love,
Mom
Where did my baby go? I think this constantly, just about every time I look at you. You’ve grown into the most kind, creative, brilliant little boy I’ve ever known (perhaps I’m biased…). We’re getting to the point in your childhood where I genuinely enjoy conversations with you, as you always have an interesting perspective to share. Seeing the world through your eyes really does brighten my day & ultimately make me a better person, as cheesy as that sounds. In you Dad & I are starting to reap the benefits of our efforts as parents, and I know it’s just the beginning. I’m so excited what the future holds for you & what you choose to do with your life as you grow. 🙂
I do see more of the Pacheco in you– as I’ve mentioned before, you are very sensitive. You can have a bit of a temper at times, and most often it’s directed at yourself. I’ve never met such a self-critical, perfectionist child before. You’re also extremely smart, creative and artistically talented, which you get from Dad & Nana. You have a steel-trap memory and impeccable attention to detail. Nothing gets by you these days! All of this has lead to you discovering the concept of dishonesty and “tall tales,” much to my dismay. We are working really hard on that with you right now.
You started your second year of Pre-K at a new preschool this year, which you’ve really been enjoying. Honestly I think you’re more than ready for kindergarten (you know SO MUCH and are very close to reading/writing independently already!), but since you have a January birthday you’ll have to wait until you’re almost 6 to start. And that’s fine– you have many, many years of school ahead of you & a limited amount of time to just enjoy being a kid. 🙂
That said, I do see that you have a maturity about you that other kids your age don’t have. You are extremely thoughtful/empathetic and do what you can to help take care of the people you love. Your teachers and classmates adore you (and Lord help me, you’ve already received a marriage proposal. LOL). You’re an attentive and helpful big brother, especially with Emma. You & Charlie are typical brothers who fight hard, love hard and play harder. 😉 Both of them adore you as well, and are incredibly lucky to have you to look up to.
Dad & I are pretty lucky too. 🙂 We love you so much, and are so very very proud of the amazing kid you’re growing into!
My how time flies! I can’t believe you’re 4 1/2 now. This fall you will be starting at a more formal “school” for Pre-K, and this time next year we’ll be gearing you up for kindergarten. Where did my baby go? Heck, where did my toddler go? You’ve grown into the most amazing little boy. You are sweet, smart, funny, creative and quite wise/mature for your age… what I like to call an “old soul.” Talking to you is almost like talking to another adult.
One exception to this– you’re not only an old soul, but also a sensitive soul. 🙂 It’s part of what makes you YOU, this amazing insightful kid, but your overactive sense of caution/anxiety makes you scared of LOTS of things. It is hard to get you to try something new, even just to watch a new movie. You’re afraid of getting hurt mostly, but also afraid of failure. I already see that same drive for perfection in all aspects of your life that Dad has…. and your tendency to be very self-critical when things aren’t 100% perfect (your attention to detail is impeccable, also like Dad). Social anxiety is still sometimes an issue for you too, but not as much as it used to be. I have a hard time relating to this side of your personality, and as your mom I wish there was more I could do to help you deal with it. We’re doing the best we can.
Obviously the biggest change in your life since I last wrote was the addition of your little sister, Emma, to the family. You adore her! This wasn’t surprising to me as I already knew how much you love babies. You love to help take care of her, and really to help with just about anything. I often put you in charge of Charlie when I have my hands full with Emma, and consider myself extremely lucky that you are the sort of kid that I can rely on for things like that. For example, Charlie is learning that he must always hold your hand when we’re walking in public places because usually I am carrying Emma (and can trust you to steer him away from the street 😉 ). Charlie and Emma both adore you, too. Charlie wants to be with you all the time, doing everything you do (which annoys the heck out of you sometimes), and Emma just lights up when you talk to her. They are both really lucky to have such an awesome big brother. 😀
Our transition to a family of 5 hasn’t been all sunshine and rainbows, however. There’s an old saying that goes “When mama ain’t happy, nobody’s happy” which very much applies to our life these last few months. I have been struggling with getting my PPD under control, and the whole family has paid the price. This combination of events has led to you acting out more, and it can become a vicious cycle. So I haven’t been the best mom I could be… and I’m terribly sorry for that. The other kids won’t remember this phase of our life, but you might. Whenever you do read these letters, there is one message I want you to understand above all else– although things are never perfect and life can be very messy, DAD & I LOVE YOU SO VERY MUCH. I don’t think you’ll ever really understand the way we feel about you unless you become a parent yourself someday. We really are trying our best to give you three a fantastic life and raise you well. The trouble is that we don’t really know what the heck we’re doing…. and we’re human. I hope you’ll forgive us that. 😉
Things you love– legos (or any building toys, really), art (still a very talented artist!), super heroes (especially ninja turtles and batman), video games (to Dad’s delight and my dismay), and spending time with your family & friends. Things you hate– animals (if they get too close to you), water in your face/eyes (which has made the pool & such a challenge this summer), kale chips (your reaction when I had you try one recently was PRICELESS, haha!), and disapproval (you’re very much a people-pleaser). You don’t dislike sports, and even tried t-ball this spring, but it doesn’t come naturally to you & therefore you get bored with them quickly. Dad was your t-ball coach and I thought you both did a fabulous job… but as much as I love baseball, it’s kind of a boring sport for a 4 year old to play. Truthfully, your ideal day is spent at home with legos, markers, and something superhero-related on TV.
It’s funny how you & Charlie are so different, yet come from the same gene pool. And thank goodness, you’re both turning out to be amazing human beings. 🙂 It will be interesting to see how Emma’s personality develops. I seriously am the luckiest mom on the planet… you three are the coolest kids and even though handling all three of you can be very challenging and exhausting, I wouldn’t trade a second of it. And to think it all started with you, my sweet Alex. I thank my lucky stars everyday for that!
Oh my goodness, you are FOUR! I’ve said this out loud a million times already, but I still can’t believe it. Gone are the days of babyhood and even toddlerhood– you are a smart, sweet, precocious little boy now.
As indicated by the title of this letter, you are incredibly intelligent and inquisitive. We’ve finally entered not just the “Why?” phase, but also the “How?” phase. For example, you have asked me a few times over the course of my pregnancy with Emma about how she was going to make her debut… but only recently did you question the logistics of it. A recent conversation we had went something like this:
You: Mom, how is Baby Emma coming out of your tummy? Me: Well, the doctors are going to help me get her out. You: But HOW are the doctors going to help you get her out? Me: … Me: Well, there are a few different ways it can be done. But for me, I’m going to go to the hospital and the doctors are going to cut her out of my tummy. Alex: *GASP* But Mom! I don’t want you to be cut! That will hurt you! Me: Don’t worry, the doctors are very careful and they will make sure to put me back together safely after Emma is out. You and Charlie came out of my tummy the same way, and the doctors at the hospital always take very good care of me.
You still looked unsure at that point, and I immediately regretted my philosophy of being as open & honest with you as possible about things like this. :-X I showed you my c-section scar as well as the video of my coming home from the hospital after Charlie was born so that you’d understand that I will heal and be just fine, which helped you feel more comfortable with the idea. You absolutely LOVE babies and are incredibly excited to meet your little sister in a couple months. This is a friend’s baby that came to visit us for a couple days recently– you were my excellent little helper while he was here.
Another moment where I thought “Oh shit, he’s getting so smart!” was when you got to see Santa this year. We had Santa visit our house during our annual playgroup Christmas party, played by Uncle Eddie. You had a great time telling Santa what you wanted for Christmas (“a ninja turtle robot”), opening up your early Santa gift, playing with your friends and eating cookies….
But that night, as we were getting ready for bed, this conversation happened:
Me: Did you have a good time with Santa today? You: Yeah, but I think that was Uncle Eddie under there! Me: *gulp* No, no way! That was Santa! Uncle Eddie had left to take a nap, remember? You: Yeah, but why did Santa come down from the stairs? Me: Well, he landed on the roof with the reindeer and climbed in through a window upstairs. You: Oh, okay…. (still clearly unsure)
OY. I hope you will get to enjoy the magic of Santa/Christmas for at least another couple years, but it’s not looking good! And in other “smart cookie” news, you’ve also been ahead of your peers in the preschool 3’s class for some time now, and the teachers have been working on transitioning you to the pre-kindergarten/4’s class for the last couple months. You made the official full-time switch right after the holidays, and seem to be enjoying it so far.
All your teachers in both classes adore you, and never have anything but glowing remarks to make about you. I do think you’ve matured a lot over the past year, but especially in the last few months… and we could not be more proud of you. 🙂 Most of all, I love your imagination and silly sense of humor. I love seeing the world through your eyes, and you keep me smiling and laughing all day long.
Although you’re still very much a mama’s boy, you & Dad have gotten a lot closer in the last 6 months or so. You are starting to also became Dad’s little shadow and wanting to do everything he does.
With me being pregnant and tired all the time, plus Charlie being such a clingy handful, I’ve honestly been thankful for this change. But I’m just as thankful for the occasional moments when you crawl into bed and snuggle with me in the wee hours of the morning. You are growing up so fast, and I know I won’t have those opportunities much longer.
I’m reminded of this all too well whenever the time comes to do your annual birthday slideshow. It never ceases to amaze me what an awesome person you are turning out to be, despite Dad & I bumbling our way through parenthood.
We really do feel so incredibly proud & lucky to be your parents, and can’t wait to see all the fantastic things you choose to do with your life as you grow…. although it’s a bittersweet feeling, to be sure. At least for now I still have the snuggles. But when you’re all grown up and reading this, don’t forget how much your dear old mom LOVES Alex hugs. Even when they are at 4am! 😉
This time around I decided to write a letter to you both, because honestly so much of this summer and fall has been about the two of you growing together as brothers. You guys are together almost 24/7 (aside from daycare), including the major development I mentioned in my last letter about starting to share a bedroom. Although my greatest joy is still watching the two of you together, it is also one of my greatest challenges as a parent these days. Don’t let the cute pictures deceive you… life with two toddlers can be TOUGH!
As I said, you two are together much of the time and do love each other bunches… but you’re also both growing leaps and bounds as individuals.
Alex, you’re learning so much about the world around you, about logic, emotions and relationships. School has done so much for you socially, and you continue to come more and more out of your shell everyday! You’re incredibly smart, kind, cautious and thoughtful. Your teachers never have anything but wonderful things to say about you, and just about everyday at least one of your classmates runs up to you to give you a hug goodbye as you’re leaving. As I mentioned in your last letter, you still love to read, build, and create things. You still love ninja turtles, but have expanded your horizons quite a bit as well (which is great, because the rest of us are getting kind of sick of TMNT around here…haha). Like your father, you’re incredibly creative and artistically talented. I could not be more proud of you. 🙂
Charlie, far behind you are the days where I worried about developmental delays– you are ALL OVER THE PLACE now and into everything. And I really do mean EVERYTHING. You are strong, fearless, independent, and stubborn. You are developing excellent problem-solving skills already. You love anything that involves movement– sports, cars/trucks/trains (Thomas the Tank Engine is your favorite character at the moment), music, and animals. But you also love anything your big brother is up to…. much to his dismay. 😉 Your language skills have come a long way in the last month or two, but you have not developed Alex’s social skills (yet– totally normal for a not-quite 2 year old), and so he gets frustrated with you often. The good times still far outweigh the bad though, and overall I think you two get along pretty well considering your ages and how very different your personalities are. You are definitely a more challenging toddler, but I wouldn’t change a thing. I know that Stoddard personality all too well, and I think it will serve you well later in life…. if I can teach you to channel it properly! Wish me luck. I’ll need it.
Charlie, you also recently mastered climbing, and have enjoyed climbing into Alex’s bed every chance you get. That’s led to a whole lot of trial & error in regards to your sleeping arrangements, as we had to de-bunk the beds for fear that you might somehow fall from up there. Alex, you’ve been as wonderful through all of these changes as you possibly could be, which included many nights of Charlie snuggling up next to you, hogging your bed space & waking you up earlier than you’d like. Things are starting to settle down and everyone is sleeping well again, thank goodness! I’m really glad we decided to work on this transition well before your baby sister arrives. I’d rather be working these kinks out now, rather than when we have a newborn to deal with on top of everything else…. as you can see, there’s never a dull moment around here! 😉
But as I said before, I really wouldn’t have it any other way. I spoke about how you two have grown as individuals and as brothers…. but I can also say that we have grown as a family. Dad & I have grown, as individuals & as a couple, so much in these last 6 months as well. Being parents to two toddlers, and then making the decision to bring another beautiful life into the world, has not only brought us more joy and fulfillment than I could ever truly describe in a letter… but it has made us better people. It’s never easy, but it’s always worth it. We love you boys so much, and can’t wait to see what the future brings. 🙂
OY. I’m so sorry that I haven’t been as on top of writing you as I once was! I called this letter “So the next day…” because when you are reading me a story (basically telling me your interpretation of the story based on pictures in the book), every time you turn the page you start it with “So the next day…” no matter how much time has actually passed in the story. LOL. We’ll call this “the next day” even though it’s actually been quite awhile since I wrote you a full letter. 😉
Hopefully someday if/when you have small children yourself, you’ll understand. I never knew the true meaning of busy, nor the true meaning of EXHAUSTED, until becoming a parent. And not just that but the parent of two young toddlers.
It is so much more challenging than I could have possibly anticipated. Especially given how difficult of a toddler Charlie is turning out to be. It makes me that much more thankful that you are such a good kid. Seriously, I hardly ever have to worry about you getting in trouble or even throwing tantrums. You are the sweetest, most thoughtful and caring 3 year old I’ve ever met. Although of course you have your moments….
… and those moments are especially tough when Charlie is also having a “moment,” LOL, overall you are a really good kid and we’ve been truly enjoying this phase of life with you. The last few months I’ve been working really hard on bringing more balance to our lives and taking better care of myself as an individual, which has helped a lot as well. As the saying goes, when Mama ain’t happy, nobody’s happy! 😉
One of the biggest changes we’ve made in that vein is the new tradition of having you & Charlie visit your grandparents one weekend per month. The two sets of grandparents alternate each month– so one month you go to Nana & Grump’s (which is where you are as I write this), the next you go to Papa & Grandma’s. I think this has been a great thing for you & Charlie (as well as for me & Dad).We’re really lucky that both sets of grandparents live close enough that we’re able to have this arrangement. Having a good relationship with your grandparents is so important, and something that I’m sad to have missed out on (as most of my grandparents passed away when I was very young).
That being said, you’ve also bonded with Dad quite a bit more these last few months. I think part of that is out of necessity because I have to chase Charlie around so much (LOL), but also I think you’re coming to an age where Dad has an easier time relating to you. Your personality really shines through now, and OMG you are so like your father!
In addition to being fairly shy, you also love making people laugh (but you seem to have more of my goofy sense of humor vs. Dad’s dry sense of humor).
You struggle a bit with social anxiety and have a hard time adapting to change. You hate getting messy or wet (but do love swimming in the pool, despite this!).
Just like Dad, you are extremely smart and have amazing attention to detail. You are a true perfectionist– very harsh on yourself when you make even the smallest mistake (this is Dad to the life!), or if you think you’ve upset someone.
You really enjoy things that combine this analytical side of your brain with your creative side– you LOVE to draw, and are actually an extremely talented artist for your age, in my non-biased opinion. 😉
You also enjoy building things with legos (but moreso with Dad’s choking hazard legos. :-\ ) as well as with clay or playdoh.
You also love music and making up songs (which is something Dad does a lot too!).
Your feelings and emotions run deep– all in all I would say the biggest challenge with you at this age is working with you on handling your emotions, which is a pretty common issue for a 3 year old. But I also think you have a keener sense of other people’s emotions then most kids your age do. When you see that someone is upset you want to help them feel better.
I think this, combined with your ridiculously handsome looks, has made you a bit of a lady-killer already. 😉 The perfectionist side of you makes you fairly bossy, which probably comes more from me than from Dad (LOL). Still, in group scenarios I don’t see you taking charge as much as I did when I was a kid, so I think you prefer observing from the background in team situations.
Dad and I have talked many times about what we think you might end up being when you grow up, based on these interests and personality traits. And really we have no idea. But if I were going to hazard a guess right now, I think you would be a great engineer or architect. 🙂 We will of course be proud of you no matter what you choose to do with your life!
As far as developmental things go, you are pretty much potty trained except for the occasional night time accident…. but we have had several regressions since we first started the potty training process over 6 months ago. Your fine motor skills are really great– gross motor skills are… okay. You’re a little bit of a klutz and I don’t imagine you being big on sports/athletics when you get older. We opted not to do any group sports/activities this year because (1) we’re too busy/tired, (2) they’re so expensive and (3) at this age I don’t think you really enjoy them enough for it to be worth the time/money/weekly commitment. You do seem to like baseball (Thank God!) and are pretty good at swinging the bat, so I daresay we’ll have you in t-ball within the next year or two.
Earlier I noted that you tend to be really hard on yourself, which at such a young age makes me really sad to see. You get frustrated and say “I can’t do it!” a lot when you aren’t able to complete a task to your standards. So, one thing we’ve been trying to instill in you in the fact that you can do ANYTHING with enough practice and hard work. We tell you when you’re frustrated to stop, take a deep breath, take a break for a bit and say “What can I do to fix this?” So far that technique seems to be working well for you. This self-criticism and frustration is something I’ve seen in Dad a lot too, and it hurts my heart to see you both go through that. I’m not sure how else I can help you with it. When you read this as an adult someday, please know that I’m trying my best and have always thought, from day 1, that you are an amazing little guy who can accomplish anything he puts his mind to! 🙂
I also mentioned earlier that you are obviously very smart– in my last letter I wrote about how far ahead you are academically, and that has only gotten better during these last few months going to preschool. You talk really well for a kid your age, and have started learning to write already. You pick up on things– academically or otherwise– VERY quickly, so Dad & I have to be very careful what we say and do around you (well, we should be but it doesn’t always work out that way. We are human, after all!). Dad & I both love having conversations with you and hearing about your “toddler logic” views on things. You make everyone in this family smile & laugh on a daily basis.
Speaking of family, you are Charlie are still best buddies, although there definitely is a lot more fighting over toys these days. You’ve started trying to hide things from Charlie in places you think he can’t reach, but he’s able to thwart your efforts more & more now that he’s getting pretty good at climbing. Nevertheless, you’ve asked me many times why Charlie can’t go to school with you. And when the time came to move you & Charlie into the same bedroom, you were overjoyed at the idea of getting to share a room with Charlie.
You play together a fair amount, but also have very distinctly different personalities and separate interests. For example, Charlie LOVES animals (especially Annie), and you do not. He really loves balls and cars, anything moving really, and you do not (but you do indulge him in these activities from time to time!). You love to read books, he does not. That being said, you also have a lot in common– you both love building with blocks/legos, you both love playing pretend/dress-up, and Charlie is starting to pick up on your love of art/drawing. And above all else, you both love EACH OTHER to pieces. 🙂 Giving you two the gift of one another is without a doubt the greatest thing I’ve done with my life.
Our little family is my greatest treasure and blessing. I’m getting emotional just typing that… it’s so true and despite all the emotional wringers and mindf*cks it’s put me/Dad through these last few years, I have no doubts whatsoever that this is what I was born to do. God made me to be your mom, and I am so incredibly thankful. 🙂
The summer has flown by and now you’re sneaking up on age 3! I can’t believe how fast this year is going by (although as you’re reading this I’m sure I sound like a broken record… I know I say it a lot. Time has been going at warp speed pretty much since the day you were born & is now at triple warp speed with Charlie here too). We’ve had a lot of fun this summer, but it’s also been pretty challenging as far as parenting goes. You’ve definitely embraced some aspects of the whole “terrible 2” thing, and of course they say age 3 is worse. These days it’s known as the “threenager” stage & I can already see why– you’ve started to roll your eyes and huff at me every once in awhile in a very teenager-ish way, and say “o-KAAAAAY” when I ask you to do something. Oy! And so as much as I love you (which is a WHOLE LOT), there are definitely times when it’s very difficult to like you. That being said, the quote I chose to title this post with actually came from you a couple months ago– you said this to dad one evening when I had to work late and he had to be the one to put you to bed (it’s usually me who does that). You were crying for me and Dad said something like “Aww come on, don’t you love me?” to which you responded “How can I love you? I don’t even like you!” OUCH. Dad’s feelings were pretty hurt, although of course I told him not to take it personally… whenever I’m here & he’s not, you’re always asking for him. I guess the grass is always greener on the other side. Still, I thought that was a pretty deep (albeit hurtful) thing to say for a 2 year old.
I do think you’re a pretty big thinker for someone your age! You’re definitely very sensitive and concerned with others’ well-being more than I would expect a 2 year old to be. I know I’ve mentioned this before, but I see it happening more & more frequently. For example, just tonight you told me to be careful with my soup because you didn’t want me to burn my mouth, so could I please blow on it before I eat it? LOL. Another example is a few weeks ago, we had just gotten in the car to go to daycare and I was sitting there getting my seatbelt on (hadn’t even started the car yet), when you apparently saw that another car was coming down the street and said to me “Mom! There’s another car, it’s going bye-bye. Don’t you DARE go in the road!” You’re similarly attentive to Charlie and Dad, but I also see it with strangers (especially other kids that are crying). Although you’re still pretty shy, you’re quicker to come out of your shell in social situations and when you do, you’re quite the charmer!
Emotional intelligence aside, you’re very on top of things academically as well… and it’s not like we push all of it very hard, but you’re just naturally curious and seem to pick things up really quickly. You have several of your favorite books and songs memorized. You know a plethora of colors & shapes, can recognize both capital and lowercase letters & for some of the more common ones, you know how they sound. On a good day you can spell your name, but that’s still hit or miss. You can also recognize numbers up to 10, but you can count to 20 and have started to be able to actually count groups of objects. You know more about topics like space, anatomy, animals, plants, etc than I think the average 2 year old does. You’re just so incredibly smart and it blows me away constantly. You still love books and we read together a lot. Since you have many of your books memorized, you also “read” to me & Charlie too. Sometimes I worry that by not having you in preschool yet, we’re not helping you meet your full potential… but everything I’ve heard/read on the subject says that at this age, you learn the most through playing anyway. For this year, I thought becoming a big brother was enough change for you!
No news on the potty front. Sometimes I get frustrated when I see so many of our friends’ kids potty training and how well they’ve done with it…. but you just aren’t ready. I feel like a big part of it is that none of the other kids at daycare are trained yet either. Once you start seeing other kids use the potty on a regular basis, I think that will pique your interest. But for now, you’re still very much team “Diapers for Life.” Sigh. With two kids, a full time job and a lot of extracurriculars, I just don’t have the time or energy to try to force the issue right now. Many of my friends with older kids swear that one day you’ll just wake up, decide it’s the right time and ask to wear undies. Praying that is the case.
One of the bigger changes I’ve seen in you since my last letter is the development of fears & nightmares. Sometimes you wake up crying in the night and I have a hard time settling you down because you aren’t fully awake. It breaks my heart. Even awake, you are suddenly afraid of many things– the dark, most animals, anything loud, fantasy things like dragons & giants, other random things. When we were walking around the neighborhood recently you FREAKED OUT when we walked under the branches of a big tree because you were afraid an animal was going to jump down out of the tree onto you. Hoping this is a phase and not something we should be worried about. If it’s still an issue by the time we get to your three year appointment, I’m going to ask about it. For now, we try to anticipate things you’re going to be afraid of and talk you through it in advance.
We haven’t done a “Favorite Things” list in awhile, so now might be a good time! You currently LOVE…
* Puzzles
* Books (most recently “The Going to Bed Book” by Sandra Boyton, it must be in bed with you every night, but only when you’re ready to fall asleep. You take the title quite literally!)
* Stickers– we use these as rewards
* Ninja Turtles, Minions, Mickey Mouse, Sesame Street (your favorite is now Cookie Monster, but Elmo is still high up there)
* Pizza, mac & cheese, chicken nuggets– the typical toddler food group
* Broccoli, tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, most fruit
* Wendy’s chili (random but true)
* Anything Dad, Charlie or I am eating
* Music & dancing– You’re always singing, turning everything into a song and like to start randomly dancing when you hear music (or are making your own music). The easiest way to get you to cooperate or calm you down from a tantrum is to distract you/persuade you with songs.
* TV shows: Handy Manny, Super Why, Sesame Street, Pajanimals, a few others
* Swings, and sometimes slides. You recently mastered climbing up your slide and going down on your tummy, so that’s fun.
* Pretend play– you’re really into your dress-up trunk which is mostly just hats at the moment, but we’ll be adding a bunch more stuff to it for Christmas. You also like to give us “check ups” with your doctor kit and play “restaurant” in your clubhouse outside (where you take our order and cook something for us)
* Helping– In addition to doing everything yourself, you’re now in the “big helper” phase… although I don’t know how much you’re actually helping, at least you’re willing to let us get chores done rather than constantly getting us to stop what we’re doing to play with you. Specifically you like helping me cook and do dishes. 😉
* Babies– You still love Charlie of course & are an AMAZING big brother, but now that many of our friends have had second babies you’ve been really enjoying them as well. Recently we took care of a friend’s 1 month old girl and you asked me if you could have a baby sister….. :-X Yikes!
I’d write a list of dislikes, but in typical fickle toddler fashion your dislikes change by the second. You pretty consistently don’t like animals though– at least not live ones, up close…. and that includes our dog Annie. I think you’re fine with animals & theory, but when they get too close to you, you get scared. Oh, and you consistently do not like eggs– scrambled, fried, doesn’t matter how they’re cooked. Other than that, everything is pretty much hit or miss.
That’s enough rambling– I have TONS of pictures and videos to tell the rest of our story! 🙂
At the trampoline park, you were finally able to climb up to the top of the trampoline wall! You were so proud of yourself. 😉
Playing glow in the dark putt-putt… you quickly got bored with the game itself, and talked Dad into letting you ride on his shoulders the ENTIRE time, even when he did the lazer maze!
The Pacheco side of the family came to visit for 4th of July weekend– you had a blast playing with your cousins, as usual!
This year you got to hold your first sparkler– closely supervised of course!
You & Charlie went to stay with both sets of grandparents for a week over the summer while daycare was closed for vacation. I missed you guys SO MUCH…. don’t think we’ll be sending you guys away for that long again any time soon! This was the day you came home. We celebrated your return with a hat party!
You & Dad love playing with Legos together. This is Dad’s “big boy” set, which I have since banned now that Charlie is mobile, due to the choking hazard. Now you guys mostly play with your toddler-friendly set instead.
You want to do EVERYTHING Dad is doing– you’re his little shadow! 😉
Cheese! I’ve been working on teaching you to smile with your teeth. Anytime I take a picture of Charlie, you want your picture taken too.
Snuggled up in bed while you were sick. We had a really terrible month or so of illness in our house– you & Charlie took turns getting croup, you also had a brief stomach virus, and I was sick with some sort of cold/flu virus as well.
Miserable at the doctor’s office– they had to swab your throat for the first time to test for strep and you did NOT want to do it. The nurse had to bribe you with copious amounts of Ninja Turtle stickers. You were still miserable, but you asked me to take a picture of your stickers to show Dad anyway. My poor baby! As a parent, your kids being sick is the WORST thing. You want to do anything and everything it takes to make your little ones feel better… but there’s only so much you can do, and you just feel so powerless.
Once you were feeling better, it was back to the important business of fun and play! We enjoyed the local splash park (which I didn’t get many pictures of since I was busy having fun also), and the big playground next door.
Front porch sittin’ & rocking our shades!
Putting together one of your puzzles. You master them pretty quickly, so I’m constantly on the lookout for new puzzles to keep you challenged! Luckily the dollar store has a nice variety that are just your size.
Enjoying your swingset in the backyard, as we do almost everyday. It’s your favorite place to be! One thing that’s been an issue lately is the baby swing– you’re able to use the big boy swing but still prefer the baby one… but at 40lb + having a little brother who likes to join in on the fun, we’ve had to force you to give this up & you are not happy about it. You still try to talk us into letting you use the baby swing all the time.
Just a typical afternoon in the Pacheco house– puzzling & singing. 🙂
I took you to the movies for the first time a couple months ago. We saw the movie “Minions,” which I knew would be perfect for your first movie as you are OBSESSED with the Minions characters. You did pretty good– you sat quietly and watched for about 3/4 of the movie, then got a little squirmy towards the end and stood there in front of your seat. But you didn’t fuss at all and seemed to enjoy yourself. This little display just outside the theater was the perfect photo op!
Hanging out after the movie with your pal Ella. 🙂
Team huddle time during basketball class. Coach Mike was a nice guy, but overall you didn’t like basketball class as much as you liked baseball.
I saved the bunny ears from Easter and put them into your hat box. This picture cracks me up!
Proudly displaying some artwork. You LOVE to paint and color with crayons/markers.
You did a great job at your most recent trip to the dentist, and your teeth got a clean bill of health! 😀
Piled up with all your necessities as we headed out of town for our mini-vacation in Hampton. 😉
Riding the new “pedal ponies” in the mall. It took you awhile to get the hang of it, but once you did we were all over the place! I had a lot of fun with this too, although it is a major leg workout!
Checking out some exhibits with Dad at the Virginia Living Museum. We had such a blast there!
Buckroe Beach + playground with Grandma! You were not a huge fan of the sand at first, which is unfortunate because it’s kind of hard to avoid sand at the beach. 😉 But you got over it after awhile and enjoyed playing in the sand right at the edge of the water while the waves came up over your feet & legs (a far cry from your first trip to the beach, LOL). You & I also had a great time walking down the beach to collect shells.
You had an awesome first theme park experience at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg! Both sides of the family came with us– Bobby & Solly rode many of the rides with you (in addition to me & Dad), and you had a blast! You were so worn out by the time we were done, you fell asleep on Dad’s shoulders as we were walking out of the park. He carried you on the trolley to the car and you slept all the way home (and then some). Phew! I thought you were going to enjoy the Sesame Street part of the park more, but there wasn’t much to it & the Zoe character that everyone was taking pictures with scared you. I think because you expect the characters to be smaller based on their TV appearance, not the 6ft+ monster we saw that day!
Now that Charlie can sit in the wagon with you, we take it out for a spin around the neighborhood quite often. 🙂
We recently had a very rainy weekend when a nor’easter + a hurricane came up the east coast… so for some indoor fun, we broke out our book of science experiments and tried our hand at making “fizzy foam” with vinegar, dish soap & baking soda. You loved mixing the different foam colors!
Fixing a toy with Dad!
Getting your face painted for the first time at a local fall festival. I wasn’t sure how you would react to this, but you chose Lightning McQueen to go on your cheek, sat still while the lady painted it, and were absolutely thrilled with the results. You’ve had your face painted a couple other times since then, and you really seem to enjoy it.
Bath time is much more fun now that Charlie can play in there with you!
You and Charlie love to fly to space in your rocketship. 🙂
Recently we went on a pirate-themed cruise on the Potomac. It was so much fun! Here you are showing off your “booty.”
You recently decided that you want to be a fire chief when you grow up. I think that’s a good choice as it incorporates some of your favorite things– being the boss, helping people, and wearing cool hats. 😉
That’s about all for now. Overall it’s been an amazing summer! Everyday is a new adventure, and although life with two little ones has its rough moments… you & Charlie have brought us so much joy. You make us smile & laugh everyday. 🙂 As I finish this letter, you’re sitting in bed next to me eating a snack & reading a book in your Halloween costume, which you’re SO excited about. I’ll save that for the next letter though, along with the rest of the holidays. We had so much fun this summer, but now that we’re getting into my favorite time of year with Halloween/Thanksgiving/Christmas I’m so excited for even more fun stuff we have in store over the next few months!
Until next time, my sweet Alex. As I tell you every night, I’m SO glad to be your Mommy. 🙂 Dad, Charlie & I love you so very much!
I know I know, this is WAY overdue…. you’re already sneaking up on the 2 1/2 mark all too quickly. We’ve been pretty busy, adjusting to life as a family of 4! And I’ve been trying to give Charlie monthly letters this first year just as I did for you, so admittedly that’s been a higher priority. That’s not to say that you haven’t been growing and changing quite a bit these past few months! You’re very much a little boy now– most of your baby fat is gone (no more Buddha belly!) and you clocked in at exactly 3ft tall (and 35lb) at your last checkup. You run, jump and climb quite well but still have a little ways to go with your fine motor skills. I think that’s a skill you’re subconsciously working on though, because you’re very into jigsaw puzzles and stickers. Also, you insist of doing everything yourself these days (“DO IT MYSELF!”), from buckling yourself in the carseat each morning to putting on your pajamas each night. Patience is a virtue for sure, and it’s required in spades for dealing with you at this stage of your life!
The only exception to doing things yourself is eating– although you’re pretty good with a fork and spoon when you want to be, you ask us to feed you quite a bit. I think it has something to do with Charlie’s arrival and seeing us feeding him all the time. Actually now that he’s eating “solid” food you’re always asking for bites of whatever he’s eating. Poor kid! But as far as your own food goes, often times you barely touch your dinner these days no matter what it is. I think you are just hoping we hurry through it so you can go play! Unfortunately for you our family rule is that you don’t have to eat dinner, but you do have to sit there until the last person is done eating. That is our special family time, lots of conversations and general silliness happen at the dinner table. That and bedtime are two of my favorite parts of the day with you.
That being said, bedtime has had its series of challenges lately… from waking up with nightmares for the first month or so after Charlie was born (anxiety I think), to being DEATHLY afraid of the bath and shower for over two months (one time you cried so hard that you made yourself vomit– OMG), and most recently refusing to go to bed and crying your little eyes off whenever we try to leave the room. I do take the time to read you a story, sing songs, snuggle and chat with you each night and it’s great… but with my life going at warp speed from the moment I wake up at 4:30am until I lay down in my bed each night after whatever hour you and Charlie are in bed for the night, I’m beyond exhausted so the delays in bedtime get frustrating. On the flip side, my heart breaks a little inside when your little face drops and you reach your arms up and ask for “more snuggles please!” How can I say no to that? I know the day will come all too quickly that you don’t ask for that anymore, and so I’m trying my best to be patient (I guess that’s the word of the day) and enjoy the special time with you. I’ve gotten into the habit of asking you three questions each night while we’re laying in your bed at the end of the day– (1) What made you happy today? (2) What made you sad today? (3) What did you learn today? It’s interesting to hear your answers. Lately, the answer to #3 is “triangles!” almost every day. LOL
It’s so great being able to have real conversations with you. As I said earlier, you’re such a little boy (sometimes Dad & I are like “Holy crap, he’s a little PERSON now! We made a PERSON!”) with lots of thoughts, opinions and feelings that you want to share and discuss with us. You speak in complete sentences & you’re a little sponge, learning all sorts of new things constantly (your favorite question these days is “What’s that?” which I’ll take over “Why?” any day, although I know that one is coming soon)… an even better analogy is a little parrot, because you literally parrot back to us almost everything that we say. Except curse words– you’ve figured out that some words are forboden and when you hear one of us use a bad word you say “Don’t say that word, Daddy!” (Let’s face it, 90% of the time Dad is the offender in these situations, haha.)
Your little personality has also blossomed quite a bit in the last few months. You’re still shyer than many of the kids this age, but also a lot more outgoing than you used to be. You’re quicker to be willing to leave my side in new situations, and talk to people more freely now. A couple weeks ago we were walking through the neighborhood and came across a guy gardening in his front yard, and you struck up a conversation with him. That day you were wearing an Avengers shirt and asking the guy who was who on your shirt (as he was apparently an Avengers fan too), then you tried to give him your stuffed Cookie Monster which is pretty high praise! Haha. You’re not always so great about sharing, but you do seem to be more sensitive and caring of others’ feelings than many kids this age are. You LOVE to make people smile and laugh. You’re the biggest ham! When someone is visibly sad, you’re quick to let me know (“that girl is crying!”) and try to do something to make them feel better. We actually lost one of your toy trucks at the kid’s hair salon a month or two ago because another little boy was crying during his haircut, and you gave the boy your toy truck to help him feel better. Then we ended up leaving before he did and forgot about it. You’re very affectionate (super generous with hugs & kisses 🙂 ) and overall just a super sweet guy.
Of course this piece of your personality shines through the most in your interactions with your little brother. A common phrase heard in this house is “Mom, Charlie’s crying again!” LOL. You still ask where he is almost as soon as you wake up each morning, giving him kisses and hugs CONSTANTLY. You share your toys with him and try to play with him as much as you can. You do your part in taking care of him as much as you’re able to at this age– throwing away dirty diapers & bringing me clean ones (we keep a little step stool by Charlie’s changing table so that you can “help”), shaking up Charlie’s formula and burping him when he’s done eating, picking out his clothes & pajamas to wear, putting his pacifier back in Charlie’s mouth when he drops it, cheering him on when we’re working on skills like rolling & sitting, and most of all being Charlie’s #1 source of entertainment. You two love each other so much, and although I’ve said this many times I’ll say it again: it’s by far my greatest joy as a parent so far. Being a working mom of an infant & young toddler is TOUGH, so much tougher than I ever imagined… but my God, seeing your little faces light up looking at each other makes every struggle worth it.
And with that I think the rest of our recent adventures together can be told through pictures and videos…
Visiting a local farm park… you actually HATED this place, I think for some reason you were just in a crappy mood that day, and we had to leave early. :-\ But at least we managed to get one cute picture out of it!
The 2015 “Touch-a-Truck” festival! You were not into this place at first… I think it was overwhelming for you with the big crowds of people & all, but you were happier with it by the end.
A candid snuggly moment Dad caught on camera. 🙂
Of course we went down to Hampton for Easter weekend and enjoyed visiting family. You were really into the egg hunt this year! It was so nice having the Pachecos and Stoddards together for one celebration this year. The weekend after Easter we had our annual egg hunt with the playgroup too, so by then you were a pro. 😉 I absolutely adore that bottom photo– you look like a little model.
Tuckered out after a friend’s birthday party.
Despite the impression you might get from that first video (throwing cell phones is fun!), you LOVE to sing songs. You can really see the progression over the course of these videos– it started with me singing most of the lyrics to songs and you filling in a word here or there, but now you know all the lyrics to a HUGE variety of songs (and half of those being Sesame Street related, of course), and sing quite a bit by yourself. A few weeks ago we were in the exam room at the pediatrician waiting for the doctor to come in and see you, and you were singing a whole bunch of different songs AT THE TOP OF YOUR LUNGS because that’s just how we roll… and as we were leaving the nurses stopped us to thank you for singing and said it really made their day. So cute!
Potty training… oh gosh, what isn’t there to say about potty training?! It’s going, it’s not going, it’s going, it’s not going. I will say we’ve made some progress in that you will pee/poop in the potty if we take you there, and a lot of times you will even tell us when you have to poop (albeit too late about half the time). With pee though, you usually don’t tell us and just go in your diaper still. I do think at this point you’re pretty much ready and could be potty trained if we were to push it harder, but honestly we just haven’t had the energy (or the nerve) to do this yet. It’s going to entail all of us staying home for an entire 3-day weekend and just putting you into underwear so that you can feel what it’s like to have an accident, but a totally free 3-day weekend is extremely hard for us to come by. So for now, the truth is it’s been easier to just keep you in diapers since you are still content with that. But I don’t think that we’ll do that much longer. I’m running out of excuses not to potty train you. :-X
This is how you felt from being woken up from your nap to go to the circus. Really any time we have to wake you up rather than letting you wake on your own, it ends up looking like this. You did enjoy the circus though! The animals and the acrobats were your favorite parts, particularly the high wire motorcycle.
Thought I’d better contrast that last photo with a happy one. 😉 You’re not always fussy, and in fact I think you’re a lot less fussy than other kids your age I’ve met, at least when you’re with me. Anyway, in this picture you & I were gardening in the front yard while Dad mowed the lawn. You enjoyed pulling up weeds… perhaps a bit too much, because you pulled up some of my loriope too.
Hanging out with your buddy Colin!
Making cookies with your girl Autumn. 😉 This little princess had you wrapped around her finger from the moment you saw her. I brought you downstairs to hang out with her after a nap, and within 30 minutes she had you putting on her shoes for her and kissing her hand! LOL
Although you have many people friends, NO ONE tops your Sesame Street pals! You had a few of these before, but a generous friend of mine sent the rest of the gang for you. You adore them all and insist on dragging them all over the house, playing pretend with them, chatting with them, showing them to Charlie or simply moving them from one spot to another. You tuck them into bed, cook with them in your kitchen, take them outside and swing/slide with them, sit them all in a row and teach them songs, and much much more. I don’t know why we’ve wasted money on other toys as these guys are all you need to be happy. When we leave the house I do limit you to just taking one friend at a time, and at night you can only have 2 of them with you in bed.
These guys have even taken the place of Baby– I bought you a new Baby a few weeks ago as your other one had gotten so beat up… Well, first I tried to get you a Cabbage Patch Kid doll so that you could have a bigger/more durable friend to play with. But you declared that “he smells!” and refused to have anything to do with him (and it’s true– the plastic on his head was vanilla scented, LOL). So then I was able to track down another Baby just like the original but with an orange outfit instead of blue. You like him, but choose your Sesame Street friends over him when forced to make the choice. And now I have just spent entirely too much time discussing your stuffed animal/doll collection. Oy!
Breakfast in bed on Mother’s Day!
You & Dad have been doing this toddler baseball camp on Saturday morning for the past month or so. You’re always a little shy with it, but do seem to enjoy it once you warm up to it. They do all sorts of little baseball and teamwork related exercises, but you seem to pretty consistently HATE the part where they have you guys put on baseball gloves to try and catch baseballs. There’s almost always a meltdown during that part of class. :-\ Not sure why that is. We’re going to try bringing your own baseball glove from home next time, since you seem to like that one just fine.
You’ve gotten to where you’ll put yourself in time out when you commit a punishable offense (and sometimes your toys if they misbehave as well– “Turtle hit me! Time out Turtle– TWO MINUTES!!”) We actually only do time out when you hit, although I’m not sure how effective it’s been. Lately I’ve been trying “time in” with you instead– where when you get upset and start tantruming, I take you to a quiet spot and force you to sit in my lap doing something soothing (like taking deep breaths) until you calm down. Then after you’re calm and able to listen properly, we talk about whatever it is that you did wrong or that made you upset. That seems to be working a little better– last night you actually randomly turned yourself away from me & Charlie and started deep breathing on your own. I asked if you were okay and you said “yeah, just breathing” and after a few minutes you turned back to me and said “I feel better now” and gave me a hug. I was feeding Charlie at the time, my theory is maybe you were upset that I was busy with Charlie and not paying enough attention to you. So…. maybe the time ins are working? Parenting is truly one huge mindf*ck of trial and error. :-X But I do like the theory behind it better than time-outs, so I will keep it up.
A month or so ago you had a bad cold that brought about another ear infection (just when I thought you were finally done with those, ugh!). While we were waiting for the pharmacy to get your meds together, I took you to the Subway next door to share some milk & cookies. 🙂 But even now, weeks later, any time we go by that Subway you’re like “Get a cookie?” You’ve got a memory like a steel trap!
Learning the important life skill of drinking the milk out of the bottom of your cereal bowl.
More meal time shenanigans. Like I mentioned earlier, dinner every night consists of us talking about how our day went, then doing silly stuff like this. You are such a funny little kid!
The Hartleben family reunion (Nana’s side of the family) in WV! The reunion itself was awesome– you had fun swimming with your cousins in the pool and eating chocolate cake…. but the 6+ hour drive each way, refusal to nap, and hellish night in the hotel room taking turns waking each other up was seriously pure torture for us all. No one got much sleep and we were all so cranky & exhausted that we ended up cutting the trip a night short so that we could go home and have some time to rest at in our owns beds before going back to the grind that following week. Dad & I have agreed that we’re not going to do any more long trips with you boys, beyond the obligatory trips to Hampton, until you’re a few years older and can handle it better. On the bright side, you won’t remember much of what happens before you’re 4 or 5 years old anyway. And there’s lots of fun things to do close by, so no shortage of fun family experiences.
Fun times with Mom! We spend lots of time outside on your play set– we like to play restaurant in that bottom part, taking turns being the waiter & customer. You must be a fantastic chef, because you’re able to whip me up any food I ask for out of thin air. 😉 The bottom picture is from a recent trip to Clemyjontri, our favorite local park. You enjoyed all the swings, slides, things to climb on, and ESPECIALLY the carousel.
And last but certainly not least, lots of happy times playing with your little brother! 🙂 He’s never far from your side. We’ll see how long it lasts until you’re trying to get away from him. LOL. I suspect he won’t be as cute and fun to you when he’s mobile and able to snatch toys from you! But for now, we’re all enjoying the relative peace and harmony.
Phew, that’s about it! There are so many more cute pictures from the last few months, but just not enough time or space to share them all here. Suffice it to say that you are growing, learning, saying and doing SO MUCH every single day, constantly getting into new adventures and blowing our minds at how smart you are as well as how quickly you’re becoming an independent little being. It’s the most hilarious, fascinating, insanely awesome thing… and us parents are just along for the ride, trying not to completely screw things up. 😉
You are TWO! Of course I’m much later with this than I’d intended, so you’re actually well into two now. This second year really flew by, and it was really neat to see your rapid development occur over the course of that year. You went from not quite walking or talking… to RUNNING, jumping, talking in complete (albeit short) sentences and singing. You’ve learned most of your ABC’s, numbers up to 20, colors, shapes, animals, and so much more. Your personality has blossomed, too– you went from being a kid who takes at least half an hour to venture from my side at a playdate to a kid who yells “Hi, how you doing?!” to a stranger as we walk past them on the street. You have strong opinions and are getting better & better at expressing them. You like to help others and make people smile (you’re SUCH a clown!), give lots of hugs + kisses, and you’re quick to say sorry when you’ve done wrong or hurt someone. It has truly been such a joy watching you grow.
We didn’t do much on your actual birthday because it was so close to Charlie’s due date… we weren’t sure if I’d be in the hospital or not. Thankfully I was not, so we did at least take you out to a bounce house place, out to eat, and of course you have to have some cake on your birthday! 🙂
When you got that call from the Bubble Guppies in the morning, I don’t think you quite understood what it was. But you did ask for them to call again afterwards! It’s a good thing that we had you blow out birthday candles that night, because when we did your real birthday party a month later I forgot to bring a lighter to the party. :-\ So, you just pretended to blow the candles out instead. Lame I know, but the upside is that you basically ended up having two birthdays this year!
The month in between was largely uneventful… oh yeah, except for the little detail of you becoming a BIG BROTHER!
I think that picture more or less captures your reaction to Charlie’s arrival. 🙂 You’ve been a wonderful big brother so far, showering Charlie with hugs and kisses, helping me take care of him (although you have the attention span of a gnat at this age, so you only help in 10 to 30 second spurts), letting me know when Charlie is crying (“Mommy, Charlie’s hungry! Charlie dropped his paci!” Haha), and attempting to share your toys with him (and to my dismay, food/drinks as well). I have to watch you closely when you’re around him so that you don’t give him anything dangerous.
I think you’ll enjoy being a big brother even more once Charlie’s big enough to really play with you, but for now you’ve been very sweet and patient with him. Thank goodness. 😉
Between the new baby and the wintery weather, we’ve been stuck inside the house almost every day for the last couple of months. We’ve spent copious amounts of time playing with Play Doh, Legos and puzzles– those are your favorite things at the moment. You also really enjoy playing with stickers and occasionally painting or coloring with markers. I had to stop giving you crayons because you kept trying to eat them. :-\ Hide and seek is another big favorite around the house. Here’s some pictures and videos of the fun we’ve been up to the last few months:
“Peeky-boo!” Almost every night after dinner we sit around the table doing silly things like playing peek-a-boo. Sometimes Dad shows you some “magic” by making things “disappear” from under your cup. You try to do the same, but it’s mostly you yelling “ta-da!” a lot. Haha.
Playing the drums with your feet… Gosh, you’re so talented! 😉
The doctor is in! You like to play pretend with your doctor set, your play kitchen, and a set of pretend hats you got for Christmas.
Helping Dad put together what you decided was “a robot” but is actually a snow blower. LOL. Speaking of snow…
Unfortunately the snow that day wasn’t sticky enough to build a snowman, so we had to settle for snow angels instead.
You really like being wrapped up in blankets lately. Not sure if it has something to do with seeing Charlie wrapped up a lot. On this particular day we were joking about you being a “BIIIIIIG baby!”
Enjoying the bounce house at a friend’s birthday party recently! This one actually wasn’t your favorite; you preferred the one that had a slide on it. However, I wasn’t able to get many pictures of you on that one because it was so tall that you needed help getting up there, & you’d sit on my lap sliding down. One of the best things about being a parent is getting to do fun kid stuff like that, which you don’t often get a chance to do as an adult without kids. 😉
Relaxing in Mommy & Daddy’s bed on a snow day, watching TV. I’d be lying if I didn’t say that you watch your fair share of television… frankly I think it’s necessary when you are adjusting to life after adding a new baby to the family. Your favorite shows are Bubble Guppies, Daniel Tiger, Yo Gabba Gabba, and of course Sesame Street. You’re still Elmo-obsessed but have grown to love all the Sesame Street characters as well…
You’ll notice towards the end of that video a bit of the “terrible two” behavior coming out. It’s been occurring more & more lately. I guess you got the memo recently that you’re two now & you need to start acting like it. :-\ You’ve thrown tantrums/meltdowns over the most random things, like when you realized my galoshes wouldn’t fit you…
Or every morning when it’s time to take your pajamas off. Or when it’s too cold/wet to go outside & play. Or when you can’t have cookies for dinner. Or really pretty much any time we tell you “no.” :-\ Not that you are against the word in principle, because you love to say it yourself! You’ve also started to get bossy… words like “Mine!” and phrases like “Gimme that!” have entered your repertoire recently. But currently, the biggest challenge is hitting. You try to smack us when we tell you no. We’re working hard to nip that in the bud, but still have a long way to go unfortunately. Every day I pray for the patience, strength and grace to get through this phase of your life! 😉 Of course, it’s not all doom & gloom… this age is also a LOT of fun, and you can be ridiculously cute when you want to be. For example, just the other night after your fourth stint in time-out over the span of 30 minutes (for hitting me when you didn’t want to take a bath), I was kneeling down in front of you explaining why you were in time-out. Our faces were less than a foot apart. The conversation went something like this….
Mommy: “So Alex, you were in time-out because you hit Mommy. Hitting is not nice, and you really hurt me. It’s okay to be angry, but it’s NOT okay to hit people.”
Alex: …..
Mommy: “Do you have anything to say for yourself?” [Note: this is usually the part where you say sorry & give me a hug.]
Alex: *Reaches out & taps the tip of Mommy’s nose* “Beep!”
Oh man, it took everything in me not to laugh. I think you picked up on it though, because you did it several times before finally apologizing. Here are some other cute moments of yours from the last couple of months:
(This was adorable– we were hanging out in your room & you just randomly plopped down on the stool, faced me & started singing. What a little performer you are!)
That last picture was taken after I discovered you’d climbed out of bed during your nap & fallen asleep in the chair. It was so cute that I couldn’t really be too mad about it. 😉 Actually, sleep has been an issue lately for you as well. Ironically I’ve been so tired all the time these last few weeks not because of Charlie (which is what most people would think), but because of you. You fight naps & bedtime HARD, taking at least an hour to finally fall asleep, sometimes skipping naps entirely, and often waking in the middle of the night for several hours at a time. Sometimes you just play in your bed quietly, but other times you wake up crying and I have to go in there and calm you down. My best guess is a combination of anxiety from the big changes in our family dynamic, nightmares, and a cough you’ve had that seems to bother you more often at night than during the day. It’s one of those things where I just keep telling myself “This too shall pass…” Although to be honest, prior to having kids I never imagined I’d still be dealing with this much sleep deprivation at 2 years old. It can be really tough, especially without grandparents around to help out & give us a break.
Luckily spring is just around the corner, and my hope is that more time to exercise outside will help burn some energy and help you sleep better. We have a lot of fun things planned for this spring & summer, with the play group as well as with friends & family… Dad & I can’t wait to experience them all with our two amazing little boys! 🙂
Dear Baby Pacheco, 