4.5
*Today, I sent you off to school with your birthday crown (we added a "1/2" to it with a piece of mailing label) on your head and a bag of applesauce "squeezers" to share with your friends. At 4.5, you are smart, wiley, imaginative, playful, and above all else - silly. We love you, dear one!
*This post is a little belated due to the arrival of your baby brother, sorry!
*This post is a little belated due to the arrival of your baby brother, sorry!
Challenges of 4.5
7. Sloooowww compliance with adult requests, but just fast enough to avoid a consequence.
6. Making silly noises that also involve saliva emissions
5. Complaining for the sake of it.
4. You've discovered "power play" with guns and swords and the whole shebang. I am trying to balance my peace-loving heart with the understanding that you need to feel strong and play larger than life. I remind myself that my 2 brothers loved the uber-violent play as boys but have grown into kind, gentle men, but again, I tell you to please point the imaginary gun at a target and not people.
3. You are going to be "the informer" soon. You bemoan others' sad choices aloud, "Oh no, Mommy! She is smoking, and that's not safe for her body." "Oh, those friends ran in the parking lot, and that's NOT OK!"
2. Your separation anxiety comes and goes. I think I have certain triggers pinpointed - being the last to enter an already-crowded room, recovering from Daddy returning from a business trip, but what I need to know is how to keep my body upright when you are winding your limbs and 50-pound frame around my legs.
2. Your separation anxiety comes and goes. I think I have certain triggers pinpointed - being the last to enter an already-crowded room, recovering from Daddy returning from a business trip, but what I need to know is how to keep my body upright when you are winding your limbs and 50-pound frame around my legs.
1. You are discovering the world is unfair, and bit by bit, your rose colored glasses and the protective bubble we've built for you will be chipped away, to reveal the world as it is. Today it is a lollipop in someone else's goody bag but not your own. Welcome to character-building experiences 101.
Things I Love about 4.5
10. You recount your dreams to me every morning.
9. You like to snuggle up with a book.
8. You are my little helper - doors, bags, you want to do it all!
7. You love to play dress up, and I often turn around to see you wearing my headband, Daddy's shoes, and attempting to put on one of Tater's diapers.
6. You narrate everything as you are doing it, and you have a teacher's touch. It always sounds as if you are instructing, passing on your wisdom.
5. Watching you be a big brother is incredible. You have slipped into the role of proud protector effortlessly. Your little sibs are so lucky to have you to watch out for them and lead the way.
4. You continue to discover new passions, especially the sciences. You zealously collect knowledge and factoids and love to surprise adults with your knowledge of jet engines and spark plugs.
3. Your world is so magical and imaginative. You start the day by running a fire drill for your lovies, then you put out the fire with your toy saw. You talk to your cereal as you eat it. You hold an impromptu dance recital then break to change your baby dolls' onesies before building a marble run racetrack that will be demolished later by monster truck.
2. You are not afraid to be yourself. You continue to rock purple jeans and I finally hunted down a pair of long-awaited pink chinos for you. You wear your favorite colors boldly and you make it work. You are just as likely to dress and burp your baby doll as you are to smash a Lego jeep into a tower. I hope you will always be courageous enough to be true to yourself the way you are today.
1. You are a little gentleman. You hold doors, you shush crying babies, you deliver napkins, you share treats. When you find something you don't play with or can't use, you immediately wonder which of your friends might like to have it.
4. You continue to discover new passions, especially the sciences. You zealously collect knowledge and factoids and love to surprise adults with your knowledge of jet engines and spark plugs.
3. Your world is so magical and imaginative. You start the day by running a fire drill for your lovies, then you put out the fire with your toy saw. You talk to your cereal as you eat it. You hold an impromptu dance recital then break to change your baby dolls' onesies before building a marble run racetrack that will be demolished later by monster truck.
2. You are not afraid to be yourself. You continue to rock purple jeans and I finally hunted down a pair of long-awaited pink chinos for you. You wear your favorite colors boldly and you make it work. You are just as likely to dress and burp your baby doll as you are to smash a Lego jeep into a tower. I hope you will always be courageous enough to be true to yourself the way you are today.
1. You are a little gentleman. You hold doors, you shush crying babies, you deliver napkins, you share treats. When you find something you don't play with or can't use, you immediately wonder which of your friends might like to have it.
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