Playground Politics

We've had some issues over the last few weeks with little Bit's daycare/preschool. I'm going to copy and paste my Facebook statuses about it so I don't have to retype. So, if anyone comes by here (I know I haven't been posting) and has some advice...

May 6th -
School has called us three times to come pick Little Bit up early. He is climbing to the top of the playset, refusing to come down.. He has also hit one of the teachers in the face, knocking off her glasses. Today while we talked to the assistant director, he locked himself and another child in the bathroom, then threw wooden puzzle pieces at his teacher's face, making her cry. =:-o

The assistant director said that she was thinking he might be getting bored with his age class he's in because he's gifted. We had thought of the same thing. I'm going to look into what gifted programs the local school has, though I don't know that they have something for a(n almost) four year old. However, I read awhile ago that they test all incoming kindergarteners to see if they are gifted and need extra attention. Some school districts will test early if requested.

Last night, Little Bit asked if his dad would write out some words for him. Little Mike then proceeded to sound them out -- he read them, ya'll!! He read them. One of his teachers said within the last few months that he's also ready for early math concepts. If he follows in his dad's footsteps (what DH knew by the time he was in kindergarten), he will be reading on a college level and doing math on a high school level by kindergarten. I requested a few books on parenting gifted children at the library that were on a recommended reading list of the Texas Associated for Gifted Children.

May 11 -
Last week, we came up w/the plan for my husband to be there at playground time (when the majority of the problems were happening) as a visual deterrent. Yesterday when DH arrived, she had already pulled Little Bit to the front office. She said that LB had tried to run out the front door. Then, she seemed to think that was the last word and just walked off. DH waited to talk to her, saying I've seen other kids try to run towards the front door (IE, what's the big deal; you just stop them). She said, "NO, they don't" and then said that the director would be back today and she could decide what to do.

DH and I both went in to talk to the director this morning and tell our side of the story. It seemed the asst. director was holding a grudge and raising the bar unfairly to us. Also, while we could be sympathetic for his afternoon teacher bursting into tears, if having a child throw a puzzle piece at your face makes you cry, maybe you need to be in a different job.

Unfortunately, the director said that he can't move up to the four-year old class (and out of the current three-year old class with the new, young afternoon teacher) because there's no room. She said they were waiting until summer when some of the kids are out of the classroom and there would be room. The director suggested just seeing how Little Bit did on the playground today without DH there. At the end of the day, we talked to her. She said that LB again refused to come when the teacher called; he ran away However, he did not climb to the top of the playset as he has been doing. The new teacher has been freaking out about it, because it seemed like he was going to jump. Of course we don't want him to be hurt either. However, the director said that she talked to district/corporate, and they said if he did it (climbing to the top of the playset and not coming down or listening) again, that maybe he should stay home, because it's a safety issue. I was stunned that she said that, because he didn't even climb to the top of the set today; he was just doing his usual running around and not wanting to go back inside.

DH and I are both unhappy. We said what about the option we have already offered of Michael being here every day at 3:30/playground time to watch or to just take him home for the day to head off any problems. She said we could try that, but just the fact that she basically threw out the idea of kicking him out of school, he thinks she's made up her mind already.

We know that his morning three-year old teacher loves LB, and the four-year old teacher (he's been in there sometimes during the days) loves him a lot. He has some "best friends" among the kids. *sigh*

Edited to add -
We think he was climbing up the playset to freak them out and that he wouldn't jump, too. I think the young, new teacher just hasn't had enough experience yet, and the assistant director was just also too inexperienced at being the go-to person for issues. Of course corporate is going to go right to protecting themselves against a lawsuit and say it's a safety issue.

After a long talk, DH and I are going to be proactive -- we are taking Little Bit down to half days. If afternoon playtime is the issue, then he will just be there for the morning. We are also going to demand a firm date for when he could be moved to the four-year old room.

We will re-evaluate as the whole situation changes (if both I and DH get full-time work, etc). Little Bit will love being able to be home with us. In a few more weeks, the neighborhood pool will be open during the week and not just weekends.

A small update

A few memorable quotes recently from Little Bit --

While watching an episode of Dora about the seasons, Little Bit named the seasons for his dad, "Winter, Spring, Fall, and hot." (which is oh, so appropriate for Houston).

This evening when he came home after DH and I had finally cleared off both our coffee table and kitchen table of all the various magazines, piles of mail, etc, he asked, "Why is the table clean?"

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While I've been on hiatus from blogging (still no luck on the job front; I just haven't felt like blogging), Little Bit has continued to develop in leaps and bounds. He started asking us what each letter was on books and signs, as they were working on the alphabet at school. Just in the last few months, he's been asking us to show him how to write letters and wanting to practice them. For Valentine's Day, I received my first signed card from Little Bit. He signed the letters of his name all by himself (with just reminding verbally from his Dad what some of them looked like.)

I can't believe that in just a few months I'll have a four year old. How did that happen?! He's still struggling with dealing with frustrations when he tries to do something, and it doesn't work or when we tell him no. Such big emotions in such a small body. For a long time, we've been trying to get him to stop throwing things on the floor when he gets angry. Just recently, he started throwing himself on the floor instead! Small victories, I guess.

Long time no talk

There have obviously been lots of changes in the last month. I was very sad to have to turn in my NASA badge. My last day at work was October 2nd. I've been job-hunting and networking. So far, I've had two phone interviews from HR folks. The one job wasn't a good fit, but the other could be. Hopefully, I'll hear back from the hiring manager. Through my contacts I know I'm still in the running for another job that's an awesome fit, however, there is talk they may go with someone they were already considering before I applied. At the end of last week another job posting came up which would be a good fit. I applied. (fingers crossed)

The biggest thing with Little Bit lately is trying to get potty training. He just resists peeing on the potty at home. He won't tell us if he's pooped in his pull-ups either, even if we ask him directly. Last week we bought 10 pairs of cheap sweat pants and "big boy" underwear and put him in them except for nap or bedtime. He just held his pee as long as he could at daycare. By the end of the week, he was peeing in the potty all day, but had a poop accident in the afternoon. Still at home, he would just stand there looking at us and pee in his pants, so we had pee puddles on the floor and our rug. On Friday night and Saturday, he pooped in his pants another 3 times!!@ With the 4th pair of poopy underwear, DH and I were done. I put him in a pull-up at the end of the yesterday.

It seems he's just not ready to do this (at least at home) for whatever reason. We'll keep trying to send him to school in underwear, and talk up being a big boy and being able to move up to the 4-year old classroom once he's completely out of pull-ups. (Not having to buy pull-ups would certainly help our budget!)

On the lighter side of things, Little Bit dressed as Superman for Halloween. Too cute! He loved being a superhero! I bought butterfly wings to wear around while we took him trick-or-treating. DH bought some awesome real feather angel wings. Little Bit proudly told everyone that I was a butterfly and his dad was "an eagle".

I was going to write a post about the exciting things Little Bit is doing -- yesterday he learned how to trace his blocks and his hand really well. He also drew a very nice smiling face with representative legs and arms (an advanced drawing skill). The biggest thing happened earlier today. DH walked into his classroom at daycare to pick him up for the afternoon. Little Bit was playing with wooden letters by himself. That's when DH noticed that Little Bit had spelled out his nickname with the letters, all by himself!! I had shown him how to spell it the other week in writing; he remembered. I got a little teary-eyed when DH told me, because, that's my bayh-beee!!! He's only 3 years and 3 months old.

That was going to be my post, maybe going on about the excitement and awesome prospect of raising this gifted little boy. However, my manager pulled me into his office at the end of my work day today. Our departmental 2010 budget has been cut. I got the short straw. The 2010 fiscal year begins in less than 2 weeks at the beginning of October. They will try to find me another position on the contract, but if not...I'm out of a job. I feel like I've been sucker-punched. I'm the primary breadwinner right now. I don't even want to think about how much COBRA health care coverage will cost us if I'm unemployed in a few weeks.

Fabulous Friday

You have to check out this post from The Bloggess -- Tim Gunn, Iron Man, the Wienermobile, and a video of a cat taking a shower. What more could you ask for? The kitty in the video reminds me of our dearly departed kitty. He didn't take showers, but I sure do miss him sometimes.

Also, I want to have lunch with Tim Gunn! We could totally go shopping afterward with the $25,000 winnings.
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Last week, Little Bit was coloring a sheet with drawings of various farm animals. He started asking me what the animals were, like he was my teacher. As I answered correctly, he said, "Good," and wrote down a scribble like he was taking notes. After he had gone through all of the animals, he started going back over his scribbles, like he was adding up my score! He's only three, ya'll.

Politically Incorrect

Little Bit learns so much at daycare - songs, counting, ABCs, sharing, etc. Unfortunately, that learning includes things that we don't want him to learn. I'm beginning to see why some parents choose to homeschool. There are lots of good things about his daycare. The problem is one or two of the children in his class who act up. Several of the "lovely" things he has learned include:

1. pointing a stick-like object at me (or his dad) and saying, "You're dead. Ha ha ha ha." The laugh is a fake laugh that particularly grates on my nerves.

2. doing something he's not supposed to do (like yesterday, throwing a pillow directly at my face), then saying, "I was jus' kidding."

and, 3. in general, he's started getting an attitude sometimes where I get flash forwards of him as a teenager.

When I was young, I tested as "gifted" at a fairly young age. From fourth grade on through high school, I was in the separate gifted program classes. We moved at a faster pace and had many more hands-on and field trip activities. Maybe it's snobbery, but I was glad to not have to deal with the lowest common denominator in the regular classes who only wanted to cause trouble in class. DH and I and our pediatrician suspect that Little Bit will test as "gifted"; he's already show some signs. Part of me looks forward to getting him into the gifted programs where he will be surrounded by other bright, inquisitive children who want to learn.

Fabulous Friday

In honor of the premiere of "Project Runway" last night...

Three things

Three things important to me in parenting

1.) This one you've probably hear before. Pick your battles. Or, as we say around the avonlea household, Is this the hill you want to die on, soldier? I ask myself if whatever I want Little Bit to do (or not) is really that important? Does it matter if he eats his food one way or another, as long as it ends up inside his tummy and not on the floor? Then, why try to force him to do it my way? Does it matter if that item he wants gets "toddlerized"? No, then let him carry that advertising booklet around and color on it, or drop it on the floor. Related to this is...

2.) Respect Little Bit as a person. Yes, he's still a child, but if I can give him choices, if I can give him some say in his life, then he gets a little autonomy. He has his own likes and dislikes, and they can change. At one point, he was fine with us cutting up his dinner roll into bite-sized pieces, but one day, there were going to be tears if he didn't get a whole roll, unblemished. So I gave it to him, and laughed when he smooshed the whole thing against his mouth trying to get a bite. Sure, that's a trivial example, but there are lots of little choices he can make.

3.) Let him play! I do not want to overschedule him with a bunch of activities and lessons. First, he's only three. However, when he gets older, we'll sign him up for one or two things at a time, eventually working our way through different sports, scouting, martial arts, music, etc. so he can find out what he enjoys. For now, just playing is pretty darn good. I will not be pushing tutoring on Little Bit, like the people mentioned in this article, in order to prepare him for kindergarten.

[Play is] also a critical way that children develop language, express their creativity, expand their social skills, solve problems and generally learn about their world — all important abilities that will help them in kindergarten and well beyond.

-- Joan Almon, Executive Director of Alliance for Childhood

Big Boy

Me, speaking to Little Bit: Let's take off your sandals; they make your feet stink.
Little Bit: No, they don't. My poo-poo makes me stink.
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We took Little Bit for his three-year old checkup. The pediatrician says that he is still in the 75th percentile for height and weight. His vocabulary is good. She had him try to draw a few shapes that she drew first. He got the circle (a three-year old skill, she said) and the plus sign (a three and a half year old skill). He's not quite up to drawing a square yet (a five-year old skill), but he did get one corner on the shape he drew. Just in the last few months his coloring skills have grown. He no longer just colors with big swipes of color across the outlines on the page. He tries to color inside the lines and does a pretty good job of it.

When we told the pediatrician that he likes to "read" back his bedtime story books to us, she was impressed. She said that telling stories was closer to a five-year old skill. We need to video Little Bit "reading" The Cat in the Hat. It's hilarious. "You go 'way now t'ing One and Two. No here while Mommy away! You go 'way!! Please!"

Last week, he was reading a bedtime story back to me. The story had asked questions like, "Do you see the present with the big red bow?" Little Bit asked me the questions and when I answered correctly, he said, "Good, Mommy!" My little teacher. Then, he surprised me by coming up with his own new questions. Though, of course, he is still only three. "Can you find the red... with ladybug spots?" I pointed to the picture of a ladybug.

A first visit to the boardwalk

We took Little Bit for his first trip to Kemah Boardwalk last week. He was so excited when he saw the huge carousel and the train. We rode the carousel first, then the train around the boardwalk. No kiddie rides for us. We even rode the full-sized ferris wheel. He wasn't scared at all to be up so high.

Like his cousin, he is in the full-on "why?" stage.

"Why the wheel stop up here?"
"Why dat boat out there?"

We saw the stingray exhibit at Kemah. Little Bit was so excited and fascinated to see the huge stingrays and the colorful fish in the tanks. The stingray tank was set up so people could feed them and pet them. I was too chicken to do either. Little Bit laughed in surprise when one stingray came splashing out of the water at the edge of the tank. It saw us standing there and came looking for food.

"Why dat fish do dat?"
"Why...?"

At the end of the evening, we carried a very tired little boy, clinging to his new stuffed turtle (from the visitor store), to the car. The first thing he talked about the next morning was that he had gotten to ride the carousel, the train, and the ferris wheel the day before.

Blah, blah, blah

I haven't felt like posting lately, mostly because it seems like it would all be about the same thing -- how tired I am of being tired. While at least the hormonal roller coaster has smoothed out (though with monthly grumpiness), I still keep getting sinus infections. Little Bit has brought home two run-of-the-mill colds over the last month or so. I catch them, and they immediately turn into infections for me.

My regular sinus doc, Sinus Doc 1, wanted to refer me to a "specialist" specialist -- a sinus doc who sees all the unusual cases. The original "specialist", Sinus Doc 2, was out of the country until August. OK, I went and saw Sinus Doc 3, the head of the department and the doc who taught Sinus Doc 2. What a big fat waste of time that was. I had to drive down to the medical center (about an hour drive in traffic), then first talk to his nurse in detail about my history, then in detail to two of his residents, then finally he came in. His residents, and then he, kept asking me, "what's the worst symptom?" How about getting sinus infections all the effing time?!?j

"No, that's a diagnosis. What's the worst symptom?"

OK. Fine. PTHththththt!!

He looked into my sinuses with the scope (not even using the numbing spray, which I should have spoken up about). Owwww. He said that since I didn't have an infection at that moment, he couldn't tell anything, what was causing the infections to keep coming back. So, I'm supposed to go back when I have a sinus infection. We scheduled me for ~5 weeks after that appointment. I had a sinus infection last week, but could I move my appointment up? No, of course not. The next opening was only one week sooner than my original appointment. So, rather than suffer from the symptoms and mind-numbing exhaustion for another 2.5 weeks, I self-treated (as my regular sinus doc said I could) with my nebulized antibiotics.

Now, I actually get to hope I somehow manage to get another sinus infection at just the right time, not too many days before my appointment. Oh, joy.

I just feel like it never ends. The infections keep popping up. I can't get my head above water.

Sleep, perchance to dream

We have had some success on the sleeping/bed front -- within the last week, Little Bit has slept a few times all by himself in his own bed in his own room. The rest of the time he still slept in his bed, but, he has toddled into our room about 3 am and said sleepily to me, "Will you come sleep in my bed?" I stumbled down the hallway with him, settled him down, and slept next to him the rest of the night. It's a step in the right direction.

Getting him to bed has been getting harder and harder. He keeps trying things to stall. He wants one more story (on tv or a book). He wants some juice. He's hungry. Sometimes we can get him into his bed without too many tears. But once he dissolved into hysterics. He was so tired, so upset and crying hoarsely. Finally, I just picked him up in my arms and held him in a cradle hold close to my chest. I rocked him and made soothing sounds. Soon, he calmed, and I was able to lie down next to him.

He's been stuttering off and on again. The daycare teacher said it's very common for his age and that their thoughts are going much faster than their words/vocabulary can go. We just let him take his time when he's telling us something and not draw attention to it. It's hard not to feel a little concerned, though, wondering if it's the start of a problem.

We went to a 4th of July celebration at the park and got to spend time with DH's family. Little Bit and his cousin Bethany had a most excellent time dancing to the music of his Uncle. While we were there, I got to hold the little 3-month old baby girl of a friend of our niece. Oh, dear...those sweet little chubby legs, those cute, tiny toes, that little ruffly outfit...She was just so small. It made me remember when Little Bit was just born and how wonderful it was to hold him over my heart, with his little legs folded under him like a frog, small and compact. I had a dream within a few days of that where DH and I were discussing Do we really want a second child? How are we going to afford two in daycare? Do we really want to do this? Gulp.

However, even with those baby-induced ovary twinges (hey, quiet down there! Haven't you already been giving me enough trouble?!), I know that we're "one and done". While it would be awesome for Little Bit to have a little sister or brother to play with, having a sibling doesn't always mean you'll be close. My brother and I are worlds apart and have never been close. We're just too different in personality and have different interests.

There are also practical reasons to be "one and done" -- since DH is 15 years older than I am, he'll be nearing retirement when Little Bit is in high school. We'd like to be able to retire sometime, you know, before we die, and enjoy time together, and also still provide some college money for Little Bit.

I also selfishly enjoy being able to hand-off between me and DH, knowing DH is not outnumbered, so I can go for some 'retail therapy' or take a nap or read a book.

Ach-chooo!!

I finally got an allergy test done to see exactly what causes my almost year-round stuffy nose and sinus issues. Yep, I'm allergic to everything...OK, not really. However, out of 38 allergens tested, I'm allergic to 23 of them to varying degrees.

There's nothing quite as fun as getting stuck with 40 + small needles filled with various diluted allergens. You want to inject me with "Cockroach Mix"? Awesome. Oh, and two different kinds of dust mite allergens? Sign me up. My upper arm still has a cross-hatch pattern of red dots from the testing. It looks like I had a run-in with Pinhead.

Also? I now know more than I ever wanted to know about dust mites. And where they live. And how much of their "waste" adds to the weight of your pillows and mattress over the years. Just don't google it. Trust me. I wish I didn't know.

So, my list of allergies includes the ever popular dust mite and molds and several grass and tree pollens, as well as cat and dog. Not mice though. Or horse. So, you know, if I wanted a pet mouse, that would be ok. I'm allergic to Virginia Oak tree pollen, but not Eastern Sycamore. It seems very random to me. Why am I allergic to this tree or grass, but not that one?

Now, Allergen-Free Bedroom! is on. (Or as allergen-free as we can get it.) I need to get full mattress and pillow encasings to block the dust mite allergens. An air filtering unit for the bedroom would be wise. Just those things will probably cost about $200 to $300. We need to minimize dust collectors sitting around the bedroom, and dust, vacuum, and launder weekly*. Next, I will start allergy treatments, which are going to cost about $100 a month! If it improves my sinus situation though, it would be worth it. I hope.

*I almost forgot to add -- I now have a doctor's excuse for not cleaning. Heh heh heh. The literature says that an "allergy sufferer should avoid being home when cleaning is done, or wear a face mask". Sorry, DH, I have to go have a manicure while you clean. Heh heh heh.

Awesome...we're only at a heat index of 106, instead of the forecast 117

You know you live in Texas when...

You park farther away from the door just to get the spot that is shaded (even if that "shade" is just a few piddly leaves/branches).

Your city's forecast looks like this - Highs: upper 90s and Lows: upper 70s - for the next billion days, or until August, when it will get even hotter.

Even your three year old knows the score. "Let's go there, where it's nice and cool," he says, when talking about what to do next.

You love to look at the flowers in your garden...through the window, from your air-conditioned living room.

You ignore the weeds in said flower garden, because it's too damn hot to pull weeds.

You actually can watch the grass grow (it grows so fast), unless the grass is turning brown from no rain.

Short takes

We were discussing dinner. I asked Little Bit, "Are you going to eat a lot?"

He said, "No...a little a lot."

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DH and I were dropping Little Bit off at the drop-in daycare near our house this past Saturday. (Yay -- date time for mom and dad!) This place has a huge indoor play set that looks like a tree, with slides, climbing boards, tunnels, and bridges. Little Bit grew very excited when we said that he was going to that daycare for the afternoon. The daycare rules say children have to be over 3 years old to climb on the tree play set. Sometimes in the past, they have let Little Bit climb on it because even though he wasn't three yet, he was tall enough for a three year old. However, he remembered clearly his disappointment the last time when a daycare worker said he couldn't climb it because he wasn't old enough. He wanted to be sure that they knew he had a birthday, and that he is three now.

As we checked in at the daycare desk, Little Bit proclaimed to the woman there, "I older. I feel old."

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Little Bit has taken to declaring all the things he will be able to do when he is older. These things are quite varied. According to him, when he is bigger he will get to watch cartoon after cartoon on the tv. He'll be tall enough to touch the ceiling while standing on the top step of his bunk bed. This morning he commented on my dress (a dress he has oooh'ed over before and said was pretty). He said, "I be bigger, and I can wear that [points to my dress] and that [points to my cardigan] and that [points to my necklace]!"

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Now that the days are longer it has become more difficult to convince Little Bit that his bedtime is approaching. Some of the neighborhood kids were playing in the turn-around at the end of our street after dinner last week. Little Bit insisted on going to see them. DH took him. Little Bit had the best time playing with the "big kids" and the "big girls". They were throwing and kicking a ball and drawing on the street with chalk. The olders kids were great with Little Bit, including him in the fun. Little Bit wanted to keep playing and playing. DH finally had to physically carry Little Bit home as it was getting dark (and way past his bedtime).

The next morning, the very first thing Little Bit said as he got out of bed was, "The big kids getting up? We go play the big kids?"

Apparently, another thing he thinks he'll be able to do when he's older is play for as long as he wants. "I get bigger and play the big kids!"

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It's always fun to have your words thrown back at you, isn't it?

Me: (calling Little Bit to come here, please)
Little Bit: Just a minute!

DH: (joking around with Little Bit, but Little Bit is in one of his 'No!' moods)
LB: That's enough!

Big Boy Bed

Little Bit's "big boy" bed arrived at the end of last week. We got an awesome bedset from RoomsToGo. Ours doesn't have the desk on the end, but is otherwise like the picture. It's like having a clubhouse indoors. Little Bit kept saying, "Come see my new bed!" several times a day. He wants to sleep on the top bunk, but we have made it clear that he can only play there during the day; when he's older, he can sleep up there. He loves climbing up the steps and throwing himself down on the bed.
For now, he has to sleep on the bed on the floor. Over the weekend I showed him how to hang a blanket from the top bunk to make a tent. Little Bit thought that was the coolest thing ever!
"Come on, Mommy! Come inside the tent!....This is fun!"

Now that he has his big boy bed, we've begun the transition to him sleeping in his room in his bed by himself. While it's been awesome having a snuggly little boy snoring quietly with us many nights, he also can be a flopper. Somehow he'll end up with his feet on his dad and his head on me. Or he'll be completely flipped with his head at the foot of the bed. He sometimes cries out or talks in his sleep if he's having a dream.

Little Bit loves his new bed so much that he'll excitedly run to his room when it's bedtime. When I go to bed, I sleep next to him for now. I tried just going back to my bed, but he toddled into our room in the middle of the night. The next day it took some convincing to get him to go to his own bed, even when I reassured him that I would sleep next to him. I think he got scared when he woke up by himself and then had to walk through the shadowy house to find me.

Next, I may sleep on the floor of his room, all the while during the day talking up him sleeping in his room by himself, and that mommy and daddy will be just in the next room.

He's at the age where he talks about monsters - more in an abstract way and possibly feeling the idea out. He'll make up stories or pretend play. "Mommy!! There's a monster! I'll hit it!!" Sometimes he hits the monster or dinosaur; sometimes the dinosaur goes stomp!stomp!stomp! through our house. I have been telling him that no monsters are actually allowed in our house.

Only the first time of many that we'll hear these phrases

After being told that we needed change to get candy from the machine (25 cents for a small handful of M&Ms), Little Bit ran across the restaraunt, shouting...

"Daaadddyyyy! I need some monnnnney!!"

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We were waiting to turn left when a Saturn Skye pulled up in front of us. Little Bit piped up from the back seat of the car, with wonder in his voice...

"That's a nice car!"

(Only 3 years old, and he's already noticing cars!)

Happy Birthday, Little Bit!

Who knew three years ago such a small being could hold my heart so tightly? Your birth wasn't the way I "planned" it, but that was just the first parenthood lesson in being flexible. When your father placed you on my chest, wailing and red-faced, I said in wonder, "Hi, there, little one..." You stopped crying and just looked at me. You looked into my heart with those big blue eyes. You knew my voice; you knew me.

Now I look at your long legs, and they are already longer than your whole body was when you were born. I look at your hands which still seem small, but you are learning to build things and draw things and throw things (you've got a rocket arm). You keep us on our toes. You surprise us with your sly humor and your thoughtful sharing. We weather the storms of toddler hood together. Through it all, I'm so glad to be your mother.

A short post

One of our two outdoor cats likes to lie under our cars and also walk on the grass beside the driveway. We always try to watch out for him since he's taken to walking nearer than we'd like as we drive up. If he wants attention, he'll flop down onto the driveway showing his belly for pets. It finally happened. He was walking on the grass, when DH was backing out. Only then he was behind the car before DH knew it. Poor kitty seems to be in some pain (maybe some internal damage?), but no broken bones. We have to just wait and see. I hope he's ok, and that he's just used up one of his 9 lives.