April 21, 2009

Dear Primo,

How is it possible that you’re three years old? As of 8:08 this morning, a bonafide preschooler. A truly big boy. I sound like a broken record when I say it seems like just yesterday you were born though it seems like we can’t remember life before you, and yet it’s so true.

I can’t believe how things can change in just three months. While glancing through my last letter to you, I see that just a short while ago you were recognizing 10-15 sight words. Now, you know over 50 and are sounding out consonant-vowel-consonant words without a problem. You have all five sets of BOB books, (highly recommended, yo) and can read the first set independently, and the second and third sets with a little help. We’ve hidden the last two sets for now, but they’re sure to be coming out this summer or fall.

You have a memory like nothing I’ve ever seen in a little guy, and mention things that happened last summer all the time. You never forget something we tell you and bring up interesting notes and often the most inopportune times. You know your address, Grandma Betty’s address, your phone number, Grandma Betty’s phone number, your friend Alex’s address, the house numbers for most of your friends’ houses, to call 911 if there’s an emergency and so much more. Daddy and I often comment that you never forget anything. I could tell you so many stories of things I thought you weren’t listening to but mention a week or two later with acute detail.

You have had your own laptop, an older HP, for a couple of months now, and it’s saved mine. You love to play educational games like Didi & Ditto and Starfall.com (you play about an hour a week, split into two half-hour sessions) and we also use it for you to watch your DVD’s and a little bit of Treehouse tv via the Slingbox. (Get one.) Most of the time, if you’re watching anything, it’s “Meet the Sight Words” (or shapes, letters, colours, numbers…) and you can’t seem to get enough of them. Thanks to your addiction to those DVD’s, your sister, at 15 months, now knows about 10 letters, 3-4 shapes, 5-6 colours and even a few words – so thanks for teaching her!

You’re 100% potty trained and are trying to help train your friends that I babysit. You’re a very compassionate friend and love to cheer them on when they’re trying and encourage them when they have an accident. We still put training pants or a pull up, your choice, on you at bedtime but the only time you ever have an accident is if we don’t get to you in time in the morning. We have a baby gate up at the door of your room (an un-climbable one, thanks to your many escapes) because you can open every child lock ever invented, including the ones on our front doors so we have to do that to keep you safe. You have been sleeping with your door ajar for a month or so now, and though it took a few days to get you used to it, it’s now working swimmingly. Since you haven’t napped in a year, you’re so tired by bedtime that you usually just pass right out as long as we leave the bathroom light on and your door ajar. You’re almost sleeping through the night now (ha ha!) and only wake once a week or so. Usually it’s either to pee or a bad dream wakes you and you go right back to sleep when one of us crawls into bed with you.

Your bedtime routine is pretty awesome right now. You either bath at about 4:30 before Daddy gets home or at 6:15. At about 6:45 we brush your teeth, and have one last pee before donning the training pants. We read one book together or you read it to us, and then you turn the light out while we turn on your night light (a big blue star on the wall from Ikea.) We sing you 2-3 songs and then we move on to your prayers, which you say with us and the same one we’ve said since you were born with the addition 6 months ago of the “Thank you’s.” Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. The angels watch me through the night, until I wake in the morning light.” “Thank you, God, for….” God bless Mommy and Daddy, Primo and Bella, Chloe and Thai and Mavi, my grandmas and my grandpas, my aunties and my uncles, my cousins and my friends, and all of God’s creatures in the whole wide world. Amen.” It’s not over at Amen, though. We each get a bear hug and a smooch, we each take a turn telling you we love you sososososososososososososososososoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much and then we alternate telling you what we love you more than. I always start with “I love you right up to the moon and back!” and then we do everything from “I love you higher than the highest airplane flying above the clouds” to “I love you stinkier than the stinkiest fart” depending on the mood of the room. It’s pretty fun. Daddy and I do about 5-10 each before we get one more hug and “I love you” and leave you to fall asleep. Bella used to do it with us but now she goes to best a few minutes before you so she and I have our own routine for the time being. It’s long, but it’s fun and a great way to end the day.

You are incredibly well mannered and well spoken. It’s not unusual to hear “Mommy, can I please have an apple?” or “Excuse me, but I can’t see the book.” It’s also not uncommon for you to scream at the top of your lungs just for fun, though, and I could do without that. It’s evident that, despite your crazy level of intelligence, you’re a perfectly normal and perfectly happy little boy.

You love your family more than chocolate (and that’s saying something), and you’re not afraid to tell us a bazillion times a day. We all love it and can’t get enough. You kiss and hug your sister several times a day, and thought you’re certainly a normal brother and are often rough, you won’t let anyone hurt her and are incredibly disturbed when she cries or if her needs are not being met immediately. You’ll scream at me in the kitchen, “BELLA WANTS HER MIIIIIIIILK!!!!” while I’m pouring it if she’s getting upset. When you say your “thank you Gods” during your prayers at night, you always thank God for her, and have even said “Thank you God for Bella because she’s my best friend.” Cue mama’s heart melting. You both immediately look for each other as soon as you wake up (and you’ll open her door to wake her up if you’re up first, much to my chagrin). She wakes up asking for “Wah Wah” and runs straight to you as soon as she can. Speaking of affection, you often stop what you’re doing to come to me and say “I’m just going to kiss you, Mommy” and plant one on me wherever you can reach. It’s one of the many highlights of my days with you. You love and idolize your Daddy (and rightfully so) and he lives for his time with you and Bella. He tries to come home and join us for lunch a few days a week, and it’s so nice that he gets to spend that little bit of extra time with you while we’re at home together.

You’re in a “What happens if…” stage right now and ask me many times and hour “What happens if…” You’re SO in inquisitive, particularly when I say no. “What happens if I go on the grass barefoot and you haven’t picked up the poop?” “What happens if I go in the pantry and get some chocolate bunnies and the fruit plate is almost ready?” The nice thing is that you actually want to know and you listen to the answers I give you with great attention. You don’t just throw the random and annoying “Why” around. You are always thinking when you ask a question.

We still use a bit of 1-2-3 Magic with you, though more often than not I’d rather just take the time to talk to you. When I say “That’s 1″ you usually say “1, but not 2 and 3!” and then stop whatever it is you were doing. Your main behavioural issues are biting (almost always poor Toby, and it’s only a few times a month when you’re overtired but it seems like more when it happens), and the regular little boy things. You actually are a very well behaved kid so I have to remember to keep my expectations reasonable. It’s sometimes difficult with such a smart child to remember that you’re only two. Well, three now.

You have had relatively few temper tantrums in your three years, which is a bonus, and when you do you’re very easy to distract 99% of the time. You’ve been having them more often in the last few weeks, though, so we may be in for a treat with the big ‘three.’ They almost always happen when you’ve woken up in the night previously and we can tell you’re way overtired.

That hardly sums up what you’re all about right now – you’re too amazing for words – but I hope it gives you something to look back on and a glimpse into what you were like at three. At the very least, you should never doubt how much you are loved, cherished, hugged, kissed, read to and read with, respected and valued as the completely awesome little person that you are.

I love you right up to the moon and back! (…and stinkier than the stinkiest fart.)

Love, Mommy
xoxo