3 Years, 1 Month Old

Milestones: I think we can declare a pretty full victory on potty-training. He hasn't had any accidents in several weeks and although we are keeping him in pull-ups at night, he has only woken up wet twice. I'm not fully confident on long car trips yet since he won't always go before he feels like he has to go, but am really happy to have met my goal of not having 2 kids in diapers at the same time! In other developmental things, he's getting better at drawing closed shapes and coloring, although he prefers stickers to colors. He tried to write a grocery list the other day and when I asked what was on it, he just said "Cheetos" (which we never have in our house...but man those sound good about now). He can correct his tone of voice and use good manners when reminded (CAN is the key word) and sometimes will surprise us with his consistent use of "please" and "no, thank-you"  but can be as ornery as all get-out or will have days when just about anything will make him cry, too.

Favorite Foods: Most-requested breakfast items are "Captain Crunch with no milk" or "Chocolate Krispies" which he also attempts to eat with no milk (not easy). He never ends up eating much of the cereal anyway.  Apparently the 15 minutes of Curious George he watches while we get ready is simply riveting.  He will ask for milk when he's thirsty (rarely juice) and since chocolate milk hasn't been on sale lately, he's been fine with "regular milk." Favorite concession stand treats are Skittles, but fruit snacks are the most common treat at home, which he chooses by character ("Mad-a-mask-car", Scooby Doo, or Superman are current choices). He usually does pretty well eating meals and has had quite a bit of Chinese food lately (mostly homemade) and, if asked what we should have for supper, will probably say "pizza."  He does well eating vegetables (except green beans) and will eat sliced apples at every meal if they are available.

Favorite Toys/Activities: Legos, farm animals/fences, Hot Wheels or tackle football inside, and soccer, football, or swings outside. I'm dreading the colder weather where he doesn't get enough outdoor time, but am okay with the end of "let's collect all dead bugs we find" season. He also loves helping bake/prepare food although there have been a few sneeze in the bowl/fingers in the dough incidents that mostly prevent us from sharing food he's helped prepare.

Favorite Books/Games: Lately we've been reading  I Saw an Ant on the Railroad Track and 101 Dalmations or Bambi every night, along with either a "Marley" book or a story from his Curious GeorgeTreasury.  His favorite ipad app is Make-A-Scene Farmyard or Safari and will do a few different puzzles or memory-type games, but would be most content using the PBS video app to watch Curious George videos.  He's getting better at being a good sport when playing Candyland and likes to play Sorry! now and then, even though he doesn't have good number-recognition yet.

Habits: Every night he falls asleep to the Go Fish Splash! CD on repeat. He wants to wear his firetruck pajamas and wants to have the light in his headboard on, hallway light on, and door half-open.  He probably stays up much too late (usually in bed between 8:00 and 8:30 but often will be heard singing to himself/looking at books until 9:00 or even 9:30) but he usually does take a good 2-hour nap in the afternoon if he's at daycare or at home. We try to follow a routine in the morning: wake up around 6:30, potty, wash hands, get dressed except shoes, chose breakfast, watch cartoons while mostly not eating breakfast, then shoes, coat, backpack, say good-bye, go to daycare around 7:15.

Thoughts on the baby:  When he asks how long it will be until "the doctor gets the baby out of your tummy", we've been telling him that it won't be until the winter after it snows. Well, of course, it snowed the other morning and he seemed a bit disgusted that it didn't mean the baby was coming!  He is also insisting that "I want the baby to stay a baby."  At first, this was in regards to being asked if he wanted a brother or a sister (boy/girl) and he'd insist "I just want it to be a baby, not a boy or girl."   I get the feeling he wants to be the "big" kid and wants some separation that he is not a baby--he is a big boy, so the baby can't be a boy too, it can only be a baby.  He is also quick to point out that mommy's tummy is getting "big and fat" and that it is growing "bigger and bigger and BIGGER!" As my maternity clothes get tighter and tighter, you can imagine how much I appreciate this (true) observation!

Thoughts on God: We've been reading from his Blessings Every Day devotional each night and it's brought up some interesting questions. It talked about getting to go to heaven if you love Jesus and he asked what heaven looked like and what kind of toys Jesus had. He got a little lip quiver and said he didn't want to go unless Mommy and Daddy and Nika could go with him. (no comment on the possibility of Nika making it past the pearly gates) He also asks baited questions about who made everything (trees, birds, people, etc.) and will answer his own question that "God made everything."  He asks about flying in an airplane a lot (we're going to Florida next summer) and asked what we would see from the airplane. I told him we'd be so high we'd be in the clouds and he asked if we'd be high enough to see God. I love his innocent questions and it's always a challenge to figure out how much to explain to a 3-year-old!