Brandon
Brandon is all boy on FULL blast! If it means a race, going FAST, crashing, falling down, a ball of any shape or size, climbing trees, getting dirty, doing construction, or running he's ALL in!
Lately we've been doing more "school" together and he can now write the first four letters of his name. If you ask him to verbally spell his name, we're not quite there yet... "Bracan" is usually what it ends up being, but he's getting there.
Yesterday I was trying to find yet another pair of jeans for the kid. (I've given up even trying to keep up on the mending of his jeans. We've just designated them "play" jeans and "good" jeans. The ones I have mended just simply tear below the mending, so they're just "play" jeans now.) He moved up to size 6 already and growing fast.
He's very aware of his own body. He knows what hurts and where. He often will go without a snack in the afternoon just because he doesn't want one (not even cookies some days) but then he'll eat three or four helpings of supper sometimes. He's my simple food kid--just rice, plain vegetables and salads, and plain almonds are some of his favorites right now.
Recently he's been exerting as much control and independence as he can possibly get away with and it's been a bit trying. He's also been learning, the hard way, about respecting others. He's a very emotional and tender kid as well. Devastated by punishment, yet still willing to push the limits. One of our favorite times of the day together are the mornings when he comes and snuggles on my lap--we've noticed that neither of us has really good days unless we get our snuggle time in the morning.
He's also become a kid who needs lots of attention, which can become quite a frustration some days. For awhile it was getting so bad that every three minutes he needed me to look at something, do something, figure something out with him...that I wasn't getting anything else done. We had been praying about it for a while but one day I was at my wits end and I just started begging God for some kind of break through or idea and he gave me one. Now when we have big chunks of time at home we simply set the timer for 30 minutes at a time. For 30 minutes he plays by himself or with Micah and I get some work done. Then we set it again and for 30 minutes we play together. It gives him some boundaries, but also the knowledge that I will play with him and love to play with him and that calms him down quite a bit.
Brandon is also my big helper and finds so much joy in helping out (yes, I'm savoring every minute for the time when he won't be so eager). He washes the toilets when I clean the bathrooms, dries dishes every opportunity we give him, helps with sorting laundry, helps me with baking, carries things that need to be carried, opens doors for me when my hands are full, and is more than willing to learn a new way of being helpful. He has a big heart!!
Micah
Micah just turned 19 months and is big mister independent, but a mama's boy at the same time. He recently discovered that shaking his head from side to side means "NO" and uses it quite frequently. Let the two's and three's begin! ;)
Last week when we went for a walk to the park he let go of my hand of his own volition and started running after Brandon. This was the first time he had willingly let go and it shocked me a bit. His little legs are getting faster and where he can't even come close to catching up to Brandon yet, the time will come I'm sure. He sure pumps them as hard as he can, though. He has also decided he doesn't need any help getting up the slide and going down--doing it all by himself. We stand nearby of course, but he is quite adamant about doing it himself.
He is our observant one. He loves to stop along the path and pick up stones and look at them, or pick up a stick and look at it, or touch the leaves on the tree. He's all about texture and will feel and taste just about anything. He's also the one to go around the house picking up crumbs (on my floor?? :)) and throw them in the garbage. I have to go through the garbage before throwing it out, however, cause sometimes things that aren't garbage get thrown away too.
He LOVES books and will sit for quite a while just looking at them. Not only does he look at the pictures, however, he likes to turn the books in different directions and page through them in various ways just to see what happens. He's the one who will bring me books to read through out the day.
Micah is also becoming my big helper. He likes to close the clothes drier door for me and gets angry if I absent mindedly do it myself. He helps sort laundry, carry baskets, carry chairs, and gets his little green chairs and pushes them into the kitchen whenever I am making anything--baking or simply making supper. He loves to watch.
Last week I pulled out size 7 shoes for the kid (Brandon wears size 9 to give you an idea). He's also starting to lean towards wearing 3T clothing.
He loves his big brother and tries to play with him as much as possible, but he also has no problem pushing Brandon away. Recently he's picked up a sound that we're pretty sure means "stop" and yells it at Brandon when he gets too rough or is doing something he doesn't like. They're learning to be brothers and all that entails...
Brothers
Some days these two love each other to death and other days they fight each other all day long. It's normal, it's typical, it's fun to watch and frustrating to watch...
But at the end of the day we thank God for two little boys who are learning to love and grow, who are starting to ask questions about life, and who are already learning to love God with child-like faith.
Can a parent ask for anything more?
We are blessed.
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