Eight things a 4-year-old doesn't do...

Yes, the Kindergarten countdown has begun. Wyatt's last "first day" of pre-school was last week. He is a officially a 4K student, complete with math, language and an advanced version of 'circle time' --whatever that means. The bubble is a mere 360 days away from popping. How did we get here?!

Each day he comes home with a new song, story or lunch item envy request. I love it. He is full of enthusiasm and  thrilled to be back. I love that he is stimulated and exhausted- making bedtime much easier around our house :).

Since last week (and some conversations with his peers) He has made a list of things that four-year-old's don't do anymore:

1. Use a "baby" fork to eat. Only dinner forks will do. The bigger, the better.

2. Accept help to get dressed. Even if our underwear is twisted up in our waistband and sits higher than the Alps- DON'T touch 'em.

3. Use sippy cups. They are SO 2011. Who cares if the fruit punch stains our white heat-pressed shirt that we have only worn once?

4. Allow our moms to pick out our clothes. Only three-year old's (and other "babies") match on a consistent basis. Unless the sad spoon makes an appearance. Then we will comply.

5. Wear velcro New Balances. We want strings, dang it. Even if we can't tie them.

6. Behave during circle time. Because circle time is for babies. Unless the sad spoon appears. In that case, refer to #4.

7. Play with everyone. Apparently, playground cliques have begun. ALREADY? sigh.

8. Accept being the caboose. Being the leader is where its at. Period. (I wonder where he gets this?!)

Can't wait to see what FIVE brings...thank goodness 4-year-olds still nap. That would be a deal-breaker...

Where to begin?

As you can imagine, I have an INCREDIBLE amount of things to update on this blog. Running behind seems to be the story of my life. I am behind at work, at home, you name it- I am struggling to keep up. I feel a little on the crazy side- my days are starting to remind me of a Looney Tunes cartoon, in which I am cast as the Tasmanian Devil.

I am determined to get more organized, and I am realizing bit by bit that it means giving up control and giving everything over to God- I am only one person, and I know I will always fall short... but God won't. Somehow those words are so much easier to type than to live out.

With that being said, let's start with a HUGE praise... I really wasn't going to mention it- but this is a scrapbook of my life and I certainly want to document all the little and BIG ways that the Lord has blessed us. In a nutshell... the promotion I had been hoping and praying for came through. It happened sooner than I had anticipated, and right after I realized that I needed to be happy with where I was and with what He had given me. Long story short- it felt good to know that my hard work had been noticed... and it felt even better that after a long journey - I knew exactly where God wanted me.

And, what's new with Wyatt? He is a handful of epic proportions. Today Mark picked up from school, and for the second day in a row, he was in time out. When asked why he had been put in time out- he stated that he had pushed a classmate and threw toys. Normal for a two-year-old? Yes. Disappointing that my son is not as perfect at school as I had once imagined him to be? Absolutely.

He is also becoming quite opinionated- almost overnight. Now, it totally matters what color his sippy cups is or what PJ's he wears. Thank the good Lord he has not started pitching a fit over the monogrammed clothing yet. Oh the horror.

Speaking of clothes- that is the big battle in our house at the moment. Not with Wyatt, but with my husband. I came home from a boutique overstock sale with several precious two-piece, smocked outfits and was promptly told that if so much as Wyatt's big toe touched them- they would find themselves in the bonfire out back. I am heartbroken. It seems the only teenie tiny thing that even still resembled my baby boy is gone- only to be replaced by blasé polos and khakis (YAWN!) Even worse, the dozen holiday long alls that I have been stashing in the closet were discovered and my dreams of gingerbread one-piece Santa pictures have been squashed.

Enjoy your babies while you have them- because one day your husband might just come home and put his foot down. If I ever have a daughter, Mark Olis, get ready for hair bows the size of Texas, and smocked dresses for the next 10 years :)

This Week ...

Okay, I pulled myself up, but how do I get down?

Napping in the pack n play at Grandma's...

• Wyatt started crawling!! Just when I least expected it, he took off and... here come the plug covers :)








• Wyatt has started pulling up in his crib, and we are having to lower it tonight








• Wyatt started drinking out of the sippy cup

Check out the pictures- so many firsts this week. I am so proud of my little boy.

Month 9 Update

Wyatt had his 9-month pediatrician visit yesterday, and he is doing great! He is weighing in at 22.1 pounds, and is 28 inches long. His head is 18 inches around. He is in the 75th percentile for weight and 50th for length. His head is in the 65th percentile- so he is a shorter, chunkier baby! Dr. Jolly made me feel so good about how he is developing. I have been very concerned about his lack of crawling, especially since he struggled with the tortacolis for awhile. But, he is pulling up by himself, and the doctor said this is a great sign. He is very strong, and will probably skip over crawling completely- it is only a matter of time before he is cruising all over the place. His hand-eye coordination is great, as he is clapping, waving and feeding himself. He also says syllables now such as "ma-ma" "da-da" and "ba-ba" (bottle or bye-bye... we aren't sure:)

I also am taking a more relaxed approach with the dreaded sippy cup- we are trying a straw since that was suggested, and we will keep giving him milk in it, and see where that goes. I was told not to force anything, because that will make him resist the cup even more (same with crawling) so I am going to let my little boy develop at his own pace and not worry about it as much... (or try not too!)

Wyatt is such a happy baby, and an awesome sleeper! My mom-friends say it is great that he goes to bed at 6:30- 7:00 without a peep and doesn't wake up until 12 hours later. I have nothing to compare it to, but I am grateful that he sleeps so well.

Wyatt is such a blessing from God, and we love him so much. His smile and laugh are the best part of our day- Mark and I are so excited about the plans God has for this special and precious child.

I can't believe that his birthday is around the corner... my goodness, where did this year go?

Quick Update!

Wyatt has his first tooth! FOR Real this time- it is on the bottom left, and now I know why he has been so fussy lately- well the tooth coupled with the double ear infection. My little boy is growing up!

Sleepy Head

Here is our big guy passed out from his bottle last night. He was so worn out from his big weekend that he fell asleep before we could even get him in bed last night. One minute he was sucking the thing down laying on the floor while we ate dinner, and the next minute we look over and he is out cold. It was adorable- Wyatt is just like his Daddy in that he literally is full of energy and goes until he knocks himself out. It doesn't matter where he is or what he is doing, when he is tired- that's it!

I am very nervous about weaning him off the bottle in the next few months- he doesn't take a paci, and we don't let him have blankets in the crib, so his only comfort at bedtime is the bottle. He hates the sippy cup! The good news is that we do lay him down awake just about every night, and he will always go to sleep on his own... but he is a wreck until he has that bedtime bottle.