Henry almost 3

You know what they say, an apple a day...

Henry's 3 year old stats:
Height: 38.75 inches (78.5%)
Weight: 33lb (71.2%)

We're trying out some new emotions, I think. I hear "I'm mad of you" quite a bit (this usually means he simply hasn't gotten his way, like a cookie for breakfast, or gum before bed, or something similar). Though, I also get asked "Momma, are you happy now?" after I've reached my limit trying to coax him to get his boots on and get to the car so we can actually get to preschool on time. (I try to explain that I'm not mad, I'm just frustrated by his pokey-ness, or defiance, or whatever delay tactic he's employing that day). Nevertheless, he has NO idea just how happy I am when he asks me that question. For I'm truly elated that I am 10 minutes away from freedom. In the next 10 minutes I'll be leaving him at preschool! Ok, well let's not forget I still have Grant with me. But Grant doesn't require constant persuasion to complete everyday tasks.

Speaking of preschool, our first "less-than-positive" feedback arrived last week. His teacher asked me how I get him to help pick up his toys at home. Good question. Henry is not so good at this right now (he used to just follow along with me as I sang the Clean Up song. Now he flat out refuses, which is what is happening at school).  I informed her we're basically down to revoking some privileges (like any screen time). One day, however, I found this interaction quite amusing. I was reading a book, on parenting / discipline strategies no less, and trying to convince Henry that the toys were too unruly and needed to be contained. He asked me what I was doing and I responded "well, I'm reading this book, hoping to find out how to get you to put your toys away" and his response was "I know, Momma! I'll use my hands!!"  Gee, I wish I'd thought of that...

There are monsters in his room. So every night (though for a short while, we thought we'd fixed this with a certain amount of outside time, or open gyms to run off excess energy, plus an electric blanket for a warm, toasty bed which also doubles as a nightlight because the controller box lights up) he's in our room, crawling over sleepy parents to squeeze into the middle and either wiggle, cough, or press chilly toes to our backs. This seems like a very common issue, at least in our neighborhood, every parent I've consulted with children roughly 1 year older than Henry have admitted to this. very. problem. Ugh. At least we know we're not the only ones, and I take comfort in that at times...that somewhere out there, other parents are also having a party between 2 and 4 a.m. We should just get the kids together and go have an actual slumber party ourselves somewhere.

My favorite notes from the generic "After Visit Summary" printout I get to take home from the clinic are as follows:
1. An afternoon nap is usually still needed by the 3-year-old. Please, tell my 3-year-old this bit of information. Actually, refer to the above sleep description, and infer that Henry is tired during the day. So actually, I have gotten a few naps out of him recently. Occasionally even when Grant is napping. Two kids napping in the house gives me an instantly over-stimulated mind. I can hardly think of a thing to do. I'm generally frozen with excitement. I'm giddy. I prep for supper. And then my bubble is burst BIG TIME. When nap is over, Henry is SO cranky. It takes him forever to shake off the grogginess / crabbiness. Then bedtime can be a struggle. So sometimes, I wonder whether it's worth it.

2. More than half of your child's speech can be understood by others. There may be temporary episodes of stuttering during this time. Knows his name, age and sex. Given that Henry had clear speech from an early age, the recent stuttering had me taken aback. I'm so relieved that this is temporary and normal. Now, we can just work on the appropriate responses in social settings. When, for example, we're at the grocery store and a friendly stranger asks, just a first name basis is sufficient. He tends to go overboard and rattle off his full name (that's right, first, middle, and last).

3. The 3-year-old will ask more questions than a district attorney. Nothing is sacred and some questions may throw you for a loop!  We zoomed through a "why" phase a couple of months ago. But now we're really concerned with "what is [X] made of?"  A lot of this has to do with vegetables. We've emphasized that vegetables help us grow big and strong, and we need to keep eating them (read: get back to eating them). "What is this apple made of?" "What is the chair made of?" "What is my cup made of?" "What is a chicken made of?"  (That last one is a doozy.  Any suggestions? Meat?  How much anatomy do we dive into?  Bones, feathers, muscles, etc. Let's remember the follow up question is "what is [X] made of?!?")