Happy Birthday!

Saturday was Little P's 4th Birthday!

We have decided not to do birthday parties until the kiddos are older so for now, they get to pick the meals and activities of the day.  Little P puts a lot of thought into his birthday.  He has had it planned since February.  His plans were as follows:

*Waffle House for Breakfast

*Hiking

*Peanut Butter, Banana, and Gold Fish Sandwiches for lunch

*Pizza for dinner

*Yellow Castle Cake

When I say that he had it planned, I do not mean that he told us what he wanted and then waited for his birthday.  What I mean is that we heard about his plans, especially the yellow castle cake, almost EVERY. SINGLE. DAY!!!

When you asked him what presents he wanted for his birthday, he would sweetly but very seriously respond, "I only want a little. Just one thing. I want a Finn McMissile car who shoots missiles at all the bad cars. That's all I want, mom."

So, when this weekend came, I knew I was up against high expectations.  I set out to live up to Little P's birthday wishes and the joy that ensued was worth every single ounce of effort.

He was so happy to have his first chocolate waffle and TWO apple juices at Waffle House.

After waffle house he was so excited to be the 'team leader' on our hike.  Followed by our Peanut Butter, Banana, and Goldfish sandwiches (don't worry, the adults had meatball sandwiches).

While the kids napped, I set out to make the infamous yellow castle cake.  I have no clue where he came up with the idea of a castle cake but man was it a big deal.

After about an hour of working, I was reasonably pleased with the finished product.  It didn't come out exactly as I had hoped but it was still pretty good.

The afternoon was definitely my favorite part of the day.  While everybody played outside, I set all of Little P's presents out.  After this little boy talked so much about only wanting a little bit for his birthday, he was genuinely SHOCKED when he came inside to see a MOUNTAIN of presents waiting for him.  (Having lots of Aunts and Uncles really pays off!)

It was really fun to watch him open every present with such sincere excitement and appreciation.  When everything was unwrapped and there was no Finn McMissle to be seen, we asked him if he liked all of his toys and received everything he had asked for.  He politely said, "YES!"  Poor kid, you could tell he was a little disappointed but he didn't want it to show.  Seriously, this little boy has a ridiculous understanding of other people's feelings. 

It's crazy!

So, after a couple of minutes, we couldn't let wait any longer.  We asked little P to get up in the rocking chair as my husband drove his new remote control Finn McMissle into the room.  Seriously, I've never seen the boy move so fast!  He jumped out of his chair so fast that we couldn't even get a good picture of his reaction...it was AWESOME!  He was so excited!

The rest of the evening was full of bike riding, pizza, egg dying, and more!  After we finished eating, I was so excited to surprise him with his 'Castle Cake'.  We gathered everybody inside and called him in...

SUCCESS!!!

As I laid in bed that night, I couldn't help but think about how grateful I am for this little boy.  It has been so much fun to watch him grow from a baby to a little boy.  I am so thankful that he is the oldest with two little sisters.  He has this innate protection and love for his sisters that wow's us beyond belief.  He has such pride for them and even more when they learn new things.  He asks me for a new baby sister multiple times throughout every week.  He wants to name her 'sissy'.  He has a genuine love and appreciation for his siblings.  He wants to be just like his daddy often talking about what he is going to do when HE'S a daddy.  He already has a sincere love of Jesus and takes going to Church very seriously.  He thanks me EVERY NIGHT for making him dinner.

For some reason, God chose me to be his mommy.  I am humbled at the opportunity to raise him to be a fun, loving, responsible man.  But, for the time being, I pray that his dad and I can retain his incredible innocents and pure heart for as long as possible. 

Happy Birthday, Little Man!

The Pre-School Dilemma

With kiddos at the pre-school age, we have been presented with the dilemma of when to send them.  Do we start them in 2 day 2's?  Or should we wait for 3 day 3's?  Or just hold off all together until Kindergarten?

There are a few schools of thought on this topic that range from "children need to stay at home with mom as long as possible" to "Oh my gosh, I need a break!  2 day 2's, here we come!" 

Although I have received various perspectives on the topic, I think it's important for parents to realize that no matter what anybody says on the issue, you know your children best.  Nobody can judge the situation better than you can.  Trust your own judgement.  Again, there is no right or wrong answer...it's not a moral issue!

For us, we decided to let our oldest go to preschool at 2 for a few reasons.  First of all, he was not talking.  He had maybe 30 words but had no interest in further communication.  Secondly, he is not the best when it comes to change and we were not only moving to a new city but we were also moving from a rental to a new home, having a new baby, AND his dad was going to be leaving for deployment.  For these reasons, we felt that it was the best plan for him to have a constant amongst all of the change.

Now, our middle daughter, Little C, is 2 now.  She could have gone this fall but we chose to keep her home.  While I know she would have a ball, I do feel like its important for her to have some time at home without her brother.  They are two peas in a pod and I want to make sure she knows her place with or without him.  We have been reassured in our decision because, honestly, she has a really hard time not having her brother around for 3 hours every other day.  She asks to go get him almost every 10 minutes.  It breaks my heart but I know that she'll benefit greatly from getting some quality time with her baby sister and mama.  We have considered letting her go in January but at this point, we're just going to play it by ear and trust our gut.

So, when trying to decide on the best age to start pre-school, don't be pressured by anybody around you.  Rather, have confidence in your mothering and knowledge of your pre-schooler.

The Adventures of having 2 Under 2

Just weeks after getting home from a 6 month deployment, my husband suggested that I may be pregnant, given my recent complaints.  What?  You're crazy.  No way!  'Our plan' was to wait for a year or so and then try for a baby.  Yea, well, SURPRISE!!!

BAM!: Due Date April 9, 2008

I have to be honest, that was a tough one to swallow.  Nothing that a little bit of time couldn't handle but still tough. 

Fast forward to April 2008, my sweet little boy was born.

He was great, life was great, all was GOOD.  

One evening in October 2008, my husband I start talking about trying for another come February 2009.  I remember telling him that I wanted to get my last 13 lbs off before having another. 

BAM!: Due Date July 15, 2009

WHAT?  Two under two...even more, two under 18 months!?!?!?  Little P and Little C are 15 months apart.  I said I was excited but was actually freaking out just a little bit inside.  We were living VERY far from home with no family within any reasonable distance and my friendships were...developing.  My husband worked 14 hour days and I was going to be on my own.  During my pregnancy, I recieved so much commentary from complete strangers.  Things like:

"Oh wow!  You'll be a busy mom!"

and

"Wow, thats insane!"

Great!  Awesome!  Thank you so much for calming my fears.  What I found funny was the mom's who had two under two said things like:

"You are going to LOVE it!"

and

"I love having mine close together.  They are the best of friends!"

By the time I went into labor, I wasn't nervous anymore, just ready to get this started and get into a new routine.  What I didn't know that my little girl would be born ANGRY!  I'm talking M.A.D.  She didn't have colic, she wasn't sick, she did have an irritating diaper rash but nothing that would have explained the RIDICULOUS amount of screaming that came from that little girl!  Holy Cow, what have I gotten myself into!?!?!

SEE, she even LOOKS mad!

Anyways, after about 11 weeks of pure hell trying to keep a handle on this little girl, I was finally able to sit down and look of the logistics of the first few months.  What was it ACTUALLY like to have two under two?  Because I had been so overwhelmed by Little C's ridiculous attitude, I hadn't even realized that handling two under two was no issue at all.  In fact, I realized that it had made my life a lot simpler because I had to be more organized in order for my days to run smoothly.  Even more, because I had such a crazy daughter to handle, I didn't have time to worry and fixate over stuff that wasn't ACTUALLY important.  When it came to the practical day to day stuff, I just put them on the same routine.  They napped at the same time, went to bed at the same time, and ate at the same time.  It probably took about 8 weeks to get Little C onto his schedule but once it was done, it was great!

Now, 2.5 years later (and one more baby added...that story later) I can't say enough about having two under two.  I. LOVE. IT!  They are the absolute best of friends and they teach each other so much.  Not joking, my son potty trained my daughter!  I couldn't have asked for better spacing.  It is awesome!

So, if you are thinking about it or are pregnant with #2 and are freaking out like I did, don't.  There is nothing to worry about!  You will be amazed at the ability of your toddler to love this new sweet baby and then they could grow into the absolute best of friends...INVALUABLE!

Just Spit on It!

When my son, little P, started walking/running, we had to deal with the inevitable drama that surrounded his frequent falls.  I was bound and determined to ignore my maternal instinct to run for him EVERYTIME he found himself on the ground.  Rather, I wanted to give him room to stand back up, dust himself off, and keep going, reassuring him the whole time that he could do it!

I quickly noticed how my reaction directly effected his reaction.  If I looked worried when he fell, he'd cry.  If I looked at him, smiled, and said, "uh oh!  Its okay, get back up!" he'd smile, get back up, and keep moving.  Mommy lesson learned, have control over your facial expressions! 

So, when that first big fall came, the one with blood, I was amazed at how my husband handled it.  He took the same approach that we had taken on the little falls.  He scooped my son up, put him on the picnic table, and told him to spit on it.  GROSS!  Well, it worked.  Little P spit on his boo-boo to 'clean it' and magically felt all better.  Despite the fact that it did actually hurt and needed a bandaid, my husband was able to dedramatize the situation.

As simple as falling down is, especially when your toddler is learning to walk, there is definitely something to be said for learning how your own reactions can either dramatize or deflate a situation.  Our kids watch us with great intensity.  They see everything that we do.  It is in these lessons, that we realize that we have the opportunity to teach self control and confidence even in the simplest of moments.