Nathan-isms

• As Nathan was watching me put eyeliner on one morning, he asked, "Why are you drawing on your face?"
  (mental note: I better keep an eye out, because knowing Nathan, he will find a pen and draw on his face.)

• One morning, before Ben's bus came, Ben and Nathan were playing together and having a lot of fun...which is a common occurance most mornings. It came time for Ben to leave for school. When I came back in from putting Ben on the bus, Nathan's face was very sad as he stood at the window to watch the bus leave. He said to me with a distraught little sigh, "Ooohh...I wish we had another 'Ben.' "

A "Nathan-ism"

Naturally, Nathan hears a lot of conversation around him everyday. What cracks me up is when he attempts to use a phrase he picked up from somebody, but uses it incorrectly. Even better, he says it with such confidence and doesn't realize it either doesn't make sense, or it's just plain hilarious. (By the way, I don't laugh in front of him when he says these things.)

Nathan woke up from his nap, and I asked him, "Nathan, do you have to pee?" His response was, "No, I went last year."

He obviously has no concept of time.

Nathan

My last entry was about Nathan, my 3 year old. I think I may have written it during a frustrating day, because, I'll be honest...rationalizing with a 3 year old can be frustrating. But, I constantly remind myself, a mid-30 year old can understand a 3 year old better than a 3 year old can understand a mid-30 year old. So, Nathan wins that battle.

Nathan tries very hard to keep up with his older brother. It's apparent everyday. People who know me well know that I am very up on birth order. I'm a true believer of it, and I frequently ask people where they are in the family. It truly tells a lot about the person and why they are the way they are. There are obviously advantages and obstacles for each person in the family. Nathan is the second child, and so far, he's fulfilling every aspect of that personality. I cherish it, and I sympathize with it. I'm aware of it and try to parent around it. However, through the process, my biggest lesson being learned is that you can't fight it. It's all about your place in the family, and the best thing you can do is to teach your child to be proud of it. Sometimes, I look at Nathan and see myself. He's a special one for me for very special reasons. I have to remember to tell him that some day.

THREE

My favorite number is 3. Matt introduced the number to me when he never let me forget that his favorite basketball player of all time was the number 33...Larry Bird of the Celtics. (I was horrifically reminded by a very torn up Larry Bird tshirt he liked to wear in college and refused to throw away.) It turns out that the captain of his all time favorite baseball team, the Red Sox is also number 33. Nathan was born exactly at 3:33 PM, and I have 3 precious boys. So, the reason is clear that my lucky number is 3.

However, it turns out that 3 has something against me as well...and that is the AGE of 3. In my experience, the power of a 3 year old's personality is overwhelming and difficult to tame. I seem to remember a struggle with a 3 year old Ben, but I'm convinced that a 3 year old Nathan has been much more challenging for me. Nathan seems a bit wiser and a bit more determined than his older brother at that age. Of course, I put in consideration that Nathan is one of 3, and his time and attention are spared. Nathan is the last kid I think about before I fall asleep, and he is the first kid I think about when I wake up...mainly, because he is the one that wakes me up! 3 is a beautiful age in many ways...the year of independence, curiosity, imagination, verbal ability and very interesting perspectives on things. I admit that it is the age that I have to mentally force myself to see the beauty in it as opposed to dwelling and drowning in the challenging aspects of this stage. And to further this thought, perhaps the age of 3 is a blessing in disguise. For me, it is the last phase of "baby-hood," and ultimately, it challenges me most and makes me stronger as a parent.

I realized that I have one more child to experience the 3's with. But, deep inside, I'm hoping that it will be an easier experience, since Owen is the 3rd of the boys. Besides..."Third time's a charm!" Let's hope so!

Nathan's First Day of School

Already being the second-born son, Nathan reminds me everyday that he will not be compared to his older brother, Ben. He exudes an attitude that claims he can hold his own and can handle anything that Ben can handle. His desire of independence stretches as far as possible, until he realizes that he actually needs my help. Although, this all sounds wonderful, (and it is!) it can also backfire in the most extreme ways, but that's another story at another time.

We had a "practice-day" at his preschool which allowed parents to come with their kids and practice a couple hours in school. It didn't go very smoothly for us. Nathan had no desire to sit in a circle, let alone for more than 5 seconds! And to make things more difficult, he had no desire to be "himself." He decided that day to be clingy which is very unusual in a room full of toys and activities. It was clear that I was struggling with him, and I started to think that maybe this was too soon for him. I was confused. As time went on, and he started to hug me more, I realized that he was warm and his cheeks were a little flushed. He was developing a fever. Usually, I feel sad for my kids when they are sick, but this time, I have to admit, I was a bit relieved. It explained the unusual behavior, and Nathan was in fact ready for school!

All better and back to health, Nathan was ready for his first day of school! He has seen Ben experience days of school many times by now, and he was ready for his turn! Nathan was smiling from ear to ear and even jumping a little for joy all morning. I was impressed with the confidence that my son who wasn't even 3 yet was showing me!

Nathan is dressed and ready to go!

Ok, fine, I will wait in line LIKE EVERYONE ELSE before entering the classroom!

Sorry, I can't wait any longer. I want to go in my classroom!

UPDATE: My concerns of Nathan are starting to slowly dissipate. I knew from the start that he would have a difficult time at "circle time," and other structured activities. I was anticipating mini-conferences from his teacher regarding these concerns and even feared that perhaps he may have been too young for school. However, his teacher describes it as a "work in progress." That's good news to me. But, the better news is listening to Nathan sing songs at home that I have not sang with him recently. So far I hear snippets of "Good morning to you, good morning to you...." and "There are seven days, there are seven days, there are seven days in a week..." It is literally music to my ears, because this is proof that he is paying attention. The day he came home and said he sat down with "pretzel legs," I hugged him like crazy! I know I've never used those words before!! (We EAT pretzels in this household!) Yay, Nathan!

Ben's First Day of School

I am not sure if all mothers do this, but I do. Whenever we reach a moment where our children are about to conquer a brand new task in life, it becomes more overwhelming to me than it is for them. Once again, I put on my brave face and my Oscar deserving performance to hide any anxiety I may be feeling about this new task. I also feel as if I am the ONLY mother who is or ever have faced this situation. In this case, it was Ben starting Kindergarten and riding a school bus. I constantly had to remind myself that many, many mothers have been through this with their kids and survived! At the time, I didn't feel as such.

My own mother haunted me with stories of my younger brother's first experience alone on the school bus. They had a practice run on the bus the first day of school with their mothers. However, the following day, the kids rode alone. My brother walked up the steps and sat down in his seat before realizing that my mom was not behind him this time. He started to cry. My mom watched him get whisked away on the bus as he looked out the window and cried. This story did not help alleviate any anxiety I was already feeling.

Peruse through the pictures below to see how our first day turned out:

Dad and Ben walking to the bus stop ahead of me.

My attempt to give Ben a hug. He preferred to hold on tight to his bus pass.

That smile never left his face all morning.

Ben practically flew onto the bus...not a glance back.

7.5 hours later, we are back at the bus stop waiting for Ben.

Ben returned home holding on tight to his bus pass.

Ben had a great first day. I drove to the school that morning to spy on him and to be sure he found his teacher who was waiting for all her students in front of the building. He didn't shed a single tear. I, on the other hand, shed quite a few. Ben is in Kindergarten, and I have many more anxiety attacks to look forward to!

Ben's TKD Class

Here are some pictures from Ben's Tae Kwon Do class. He LOVES this class and almost awe-struck with his "master."

(meditation)

Maybe, eventually, his belt will be black!