Dear Etrain,
Four and a half! Wow how time flies. We had some pretty big things happen these last few months, including two pretty awesome vacations. But we'll get to that. For now let's start with some photos of you being a cute little helper. You wanted to do the floors, and who am I to stop you.
We continue to occasionally meet the neighbors at the Salt Creek to enjoy the sunset, dinner, drinks and good conversation...and for you playing with whatever ball we've brought. Usually you want to shoot hoops, even if the hoop is full-size and too high for you.
Your teacher, Miss Jordan, sends out weekly emails about what you kids did at school. I like saving the photos you're in. Look at you writing your name!
I just went back through the blog looking for the last time we went to Las Gaviotas and apparently you were only 3 years, 1 month old. I'm actually surprised by that because it seems like a long time in between visits. Over a year?! I need to go back and see what we did instead in the last year. Anyway, we (finally) went back to Las Gaviotas (making it your 6th visit) and it was great!
You are now old enough that you can hang through everything. The drive is easy, keeping you entertained is easy, you're up to go pretty much anywhere, etc. We did a day trip to Rosarito, and with the exception of a pretty big melt down there, we enjoyed looking around and exposing you to spring break in Mexico. We totally forgot it was that time of year, so we saw plenty of skimpy clothes and heard booming dance music, but you were unfazed. Oh, and dad's surf buddies came down to surf for the day. It was nice having visitors.
This is just a photo of you and Isaiah pestering some older girls at school. You two were hilarious to watch. The girls did a good job of being nice to you then ignoring you, and you guys just made a game of it.
We're still plugging away at your swim lessons. You're a Starfish 4 and learning the beginnings of Freestyle. Having some trouble getting power with those kicks.
Dad got tickets to some NCAA basketball playoff games and took you as his date. You two went one day on your own, and it seemed to go pretty well because you came home with your first "real" basketball (just the right size for you). I joined you guys for the another game the next day. The game was fun, but we had more fun being silly in the stands.
Funny story from your dad. You like to chose a game to root for, and ask your dad who his team is. Apparently when you guys were at the game you told your dad you wanted the "black guys" to win. Even though you are four, it's still probably the most politically correct thing for a four year old to phrase it. What you meant to say, and what your dad corrected you on is that you wanted the "black jerseys" to win. Oops.
We had already been in the habit of playing basketball down the street, but getting your new ball solidified it. If we are home and don't have a visitor or something, we are down at the basketball hoop pretty much everyday. You just love shooting and you're pretty darn good at it too.
We had a nice Easter at home this year. Our city held a (sort of) carnival at the big park by our house, so we walked down to check it out. They had bounce houses/bounce slides that you were on pretty much the whole time. We did play a few games and you walked away with candy every time. They also had local law enforcement, firemen, etc there with their cars and trucks for everyone to check out. Your dad wanted his photo taken in the back of the police car.
Our neighborhood also held the annual Easter Egg Hunt, and you did a great job this year. You (we) didn't find the golden eggs, but that's ok. You scored plenty of candy.
So big event for you. You got a big boy bed! We've been telling you your crib with the tall side turned into a short side with an opening was your big boy bed. That worked for a while, but I knew you wanted something better. So we decided to get you a loft bed. It's like a bunk bed, but much lower to the ground. Ever since the bunk beds in Hawaii, you haven't stopped talking about bunk beds. Actual bunks are too high and to scary for me to let you have at your age, but I can lift you into this one, it's got a tall railing, and you're not a jumper. You should be good. Needless to say you are stoked on your new bed. It's twin sized and looks huge for you, but that's fine. I haven't taken any official photos of your bed, but these photos reminded me of it. After your monthly photos I got a video just being ridiculous. Not sure what you're doing, but you can see more of your bed.
This winter we had a bunch of rain. Way more than we've had in many years. Lots of rain means lots of growth for plants and trees. The hills around our house have been gorgeous and I wanted to go check them out. One day I told you we were going on an adventure. You were excited until I told you we needed to climb a big hill, but I chose the easy (but longer path) so it wasn't very hard. You ended up loving exploring through the tall plant growth and seeing the view from up top. You sort of let me take some photos of you up there. The best part for me was when you said to me "Mom, I like doing stuff like this with you." Me too, son. Me too.
 |
| Grandma and Grandpa sent you a just because gift in the mail! |
 |
| Another Easter egg hunt with my MOPS group and their kids. |
One morning your dad let me sleep in, and you two took off to the park. I woke up to a text message with a photo of you riding your bike WITHOUT WHEELS! Oh sweet boy, this was such an exciting day. Your dad took this video riding for the first time and it made me tear up. I'm so proud of you. I have to admit it's also a little sad because it means my little boy growing up, maybe faster than I'm ready for. I love seeing you conquer and learn new things, but I also love your age right now and will miss it when it's gone.
And yet more dancing. You're really inspired lately. I can't say I'm a huge fan of all the booty moves. It's interesting too because the show we watch doesn't really have any booty moves at all.
O.M.G. Your Mother's Day performance at school was magical. Let me back up first. Your school held it's annual Mommy and Me Tea. There were tasty treats to eat, you made me a birdhouse, there was a photo booth, then there was the performance. Oh the performance. You were such a ham up there! Totally not doing what you were supposed to, but it was just so funny. When I showed you the video of it later, you sang along with the song. So you for sure knew what to do, but decided on your own show. I'm not sure how the teachers or other parents felt about it, but I thought you were amazing. I loved that you were just being your silly self and having a good time. This animation says it all...
You are so carefree and silly, and it's amazing.
On Mother's Day you and dad showered me with love. You made a heart card, gave me gifts and took me out to our favorite breakfast spot.
A few days later we headed to Costa Rica. It was amaaaazing. Maybe one of my favorite vacations with you and dad. You can read all about it, here.
The day after we came back from Costa Rica you had an open house to your school. Dad and I got to walk around and all the things you had been working on, including your Tin Man from your Wizard of Oz themed art project. I think you nailed your tin man and your pose with dad. Ha!
You decided you wanted to take some photos of me after I had you sit for our monthly pics. They were maybe a little too close for my taste, but we had fun. Oh, there was video too!
For the rest of the month we were back to reality. Some fun, one big boy fall, and plenty of laughs.
Everyday we go down to the basketball hoop, and everyday you want to ride your bike down there. Then one day you took off down the street the way you always do. You started to make your usual u-turn, but you cut it too close and fell down. Hand came down first, but it wasn't enough to keep you from bonking your sweet little chin on the ground.
Our neighbor was driving by and she just said "ice". I made you a comfy spot on the bed, turned on some cartoons, and used the frozen peas she brought over as your ice. It hurt for maybe a couple days, but then it scabbed over and you were fine...as long as we didn't touch it. I have to admit you haven't wanted to ride your bike since, which bums me out. I figure I'll give you more time to hopefully forget it and get excited about the bike again.
 |
| Making a golf hole thing with dad, courtesy of Home Depot. |
Your swimming has improved. You know why? After we came back from Costa Rica dad had a day off and he came to your swim lesson. He saw you struggling with your kicks, and he suggested flippers so we bought you some that day. You hadn't wanted to wear them before, but once you had your own (and dad told you they were cool) you loved them. And you loved them even more once you figured out how fast you could be when wearing them. Watch you taking off like a rocket in the video below.
Tomorrow is Father's Day, so I had you record a video that your dad could watch. I have to admit I'm starting to worry about your obsession with "video games". Honestly, you don't play video games...except when we are on vacation. Maybe it's because of Mexico and Costa Rica you've had an extra dose lately. We let you play on our tablets on the airplane and SOMETIMES when we're just hanging out on vacation (1. we don't have all of your usual toys and games to play with when we are out of town, and 2. sometimes mom and dad just want to relax and not have to entertain you.). You've seen the other kids down the street play video games, but that's it. I was surprised (and maybe a little annoyed) with how many of your answers are video game related, but I'm hoping over time you'll chill out with this.
It's been an exciting last few months with some great vacations, some milestones, and lots of laughs. Can't wait to see how our next three months shape up. Bring on the summer!
Love,
Mama
No comments:
Post a Comment