Monday, October 10, 2011

Preschool for Everyone!


On the first day that felt like fall, Will and Finn got into their warm gear
and got ready for school.


Of course, because Finn is my second kid, I forgot to prepare him
for dropping Will off at preschool.


When we got back into the car, Finn gestured toward Will's empty carseat
and said, "Where Will? Where Will?"
Oops.


The first two days of Finny's drop-off playgroup confused him.
His (wonderful) teacher--he plays with four other toddlers in her home two mornings a week--
said he was crying off and on.


But by day three, he had begun his current routine:
cries in protest for 15-30 seconds when I leave, then he's "perfect" throughout the morning.
He's happily eating lunch when I come to pick him up, and he's never in a hurry to get home.

Will and Finn with Connor (far left) and Jack (far right)

Will has been loving his new preschool from day one. Just loving it.
It's a much more relaxed environment than his previous one,
and he barely acknowledges me when I leave, although he greets me excitedly when I return.

with Connor

I'm learning that Will's a typical boy in many ways.
Although he's extremely chatty, he talks way more about his toys and projects
than his friends at school--whereas the moms of his female classmates have told me 
they've heard a lot about Will from their kids.


"I'm the best convertible driver IN THE WORLD!" he proclaimed.

 These pictures are obviously not of Will at preschool, but they reflect how socially at-ease he's become.
I think Finny has a lot to do with his development--he really notices other kids now, and you can tell he thinks about how he's treating them. Sometimes his experience as a big brother makes him feistier and more physical than his friends (and I) would like, so it's not all sweetness and light. 


But...it's still a whole lot of that, too.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

The Last of the Birthday Posts (I Promise)

Interspersed with his multiple parties and his actual birthday, Will had a few more noteworthy events this week. The one without photographic evidence was his three-year checkup at the doctor. The general gist was: still 95th %ile in height and weight (40 inches, 40 pounds), passed his eye exam, totally healthy. The more specific story is that he chose the shot in the arm over the FluMist, got another shot in the other arm plus the finger prick (followed by the bloody finger squeeze, UGHHHH), and went through the whole thing with nary a complaint. In fact, he was positively chipper. I heard them talking about him outside the doctor's office, the nurse and Will's pediatrician using words like "amazing," and "mature." (I feel I can brag about this because Finny then got one lone shot and yanked his arm away even while my dad was holding him down, then cried about the injustice for half a minute before getting distracted by my suggestion of eating a banana. So...I don't think I got two of these, is what I'm saying.) (Not that I don't and won't have things to brag about re: Finny. Just, different things. You know.)

Another highlight was Auntie Lo's visit, complete with a very appropriate Dr. Seuss gift ("Happy Birthday To You," which is way longer than we all remembered) and cupcakes.






And finally, Grandmom and Grandpop showed up at the tail end of the Barn Babies affair to surprise Will a day early--they came back again on Sunday to visit with the boys.



That concludes the recounting of Will's week-long third birthday celebration--I swear. I have a lot to say about preschool and Finny and all sorts of stuff, so that's coming up.

There's more to us than just our birthdays, Mom. Get a grip.

Monday, October 3, 2011

Will's Third Birthday Party, Friends Edition


We had animals on our cupcakes...



...and in our backyard!



























Thanks to all our friends for celebrating Will's third birthday with us!



Thursday, September 29, 2011

Birthdays, Then (and Then) and Now

Will played with balloons on his first birthday, all by himself.
He toddled through our old kitchen,
then disappeared around the corner.

He blew out a solitary candle on his tiny carrot cake.
His little brother was still waiting in the wings in my belly.

For his second birthday, Will got a Cookie Monster cake--
a little bigger, this year (the boy and the dessert).

This time, he extinguished the candle all by himself.


He still spent some time alone with his balloons...

...but he was going to have to learn how to share soon enough.

This year, Will blew out the candle with too much gusto
(while I took this picture, Dave was shouting "MOVE BACK, BUBBA!")


And oh my goodness, does the kid ever have to share:


his spotlight, his balloons, his MILK even!


Funny enough, he didn't seem to mind.



And this year, as Will disappeared around the corner with his balloons,


he was chasing his little brother.


I think he'd say this birthday was his best yet.