- Just after he turned four, this guy turned a corner. He's always been a sweetheart, but he had a major stubbon streak from about age 2 1/2 to 4. :) But now, he is SO easygoing, obedient, and helpful, especially with me being pregnant. He hops to it any time I drop something. The kid picks up more things off the floor day after day, at my request, than I probably do!
- He does one chore every morning, unloading the silverware, as well as making his bed and brushing his teeth.
- Usually his prayers involve him looking around and saying he's thankful for whatever he sees (the table, his shoes, his food, his bed, etc.), but the other night I talked to him beforehand about things that really make us happy and make our lives better, which we can thank Heavenly Father for. The one thing he said in his prayer a moment later was that he was thankful for "Mom's baby." I love my little sweetheart!
- The other day I was sighing to myself about how quickly the house had gotten messy again, and Trenton said (cheerfully but fervently), "Having boys is a lot of work!" No joke! I told him it was but that I loved it.
- He's not particularly interested in "academics," but he does know letters and numbers well, and he loves to read with me. He still struggles getting 13-20 in the right order, but we're working on it! Besides, how many four-year-olds know what "whops" are and how to ride them on a motorcycle? :) It's great to be a kid.
- Trenton is very receptive to gospel teaching and loves to read the Book of Mormon every night.
- He's thriving in his second year of preschool (at St. Andrew's Lutheran Church) and starts kindergarten in the fall!
- He is awesome at reminding me every Monday that we need to have family night. SO helpful for this forgetful mama!
- He's very coordinated on anything with wheels. You should see him stand up on his bike or little motorcycle when he wants to get more power. It's times like that that I just look at his skinny, long frame and wonder where my chubby baby went. He's growing so fast all the sudden!
Chase - 3 Years Old
- Chase is our resident goofball. He's imaginative and silly and, honestly, a little weird! Sometimes his constant chatter or his random body movements accompanied by loud gibberish sounds drive me nuts! He particularly likes to bust out the latter when I'm trying to get him dressed. Hmph!
- He still loves those "beadle friends," a few strands of red Christmas beads that get turned into everything from a finish line to a racetrack. They go in the car and in the bath—such a versatile toy!
- He is the instigator of most of the boys' play, and Trenton is beside himself with boredom on the rare occasions when Chase is napping or not with us.
- He stopped napping several months before he turned 3. Now the two of them sit on the bed in their room and have about 25 minutes each of ipad time midday. I tell them when to switch, and they watch each other when it isn't their turn. Thank goodness for that little midday break for mom! M-Th are educational games, and F-S are "weekend games."
- He is a messy eater. I think it's that creativity of his. He can't eat a banana and not pretend it's a ship and rub it all around the table. Subsequently, his daily chore is to wipe down the kitchen table after breakfast. :)
- The greatest insult in life you can give Chase is to call him small. He fairly regularly comes to me completely dejected, saying, "That boy called me small! I'm NOT small! I'm BIG!" (It probably doesn't help that Trenton's always talking about how he's bigger. Poor younger-brother complex!)
- I bought Chase a big set of colorful gears for Christmas, thinking they'd be educational. Now, at Chase's idea, all the boys do is build them into "guns." Boys!
- He's awesome on his balance bike and is so excited to start at Trenton's current preschool in the fall!
