Keeping Track

It is amazing to me how quickly we Mommas can forget what our children were able to do at different ages. At least for me, it's hard to think back and remember exactly what my now 3-year-old son was doing when he was a baby. 

That being said, I thought I'd record a few of the thing my littles are able to do right now, at the ripe ol' ages of 3 years and 10 months, as a way to help me remember them at these ages, later down the road:

Banks, age 3

He continues to be long and lean: He weighed 36.6 pounds (89th percentile) and was 40.25 inches tall (96th percentile) at his 3-year well check. He wears 4T clothing and Size 11-Wide shoes. Strangers have asked on multiple occasions if he will be starting kindergarten next year. Nope.

He generally eats a HUGE breakfast, adequate lunch, and little for dinner. He is NOT a fan of vegetables. He is a fan of any form of meat, fruits, and sweets, and not necessarily in that order.

He has been fully potty-trained for day for about 7 or 8 months but still wears a pull-up diaper for night. Side note: Ever wiped a hiney in a public restroom while simultaneously wrangling a wiggling baby? Talk about multi-tasking. And sweating.

He still takes one nap per day, which usually lasts about two hours. He is starting to drop his nap one to two days per week but stays in his room, in his bed, during these times. He goes to bed at 8:30 pm and wakes up between 6:30 and 7:00 am.

He had his first ever dental appointment a few weeks ago. He had no cavities. His teeth and gums looked very healthy, and the spacing of his teeth is promising for not needing future braces. Yahoo!

He seems to be a lefty, although he will also use his right hand at times. He is definitely right-footed. 

He still loves playing sports more than anything else in the world. And I have to brag say, I think he's a pretty good little athlete. I cannot wait for the Spring, when we'll sign him up for teeball and golf lessons, followed by soccer in the Fall. Can.Not.Wait.

He is allowed to watch two to three cartoons a day, and his current favorites include Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Little Einsteins, and Cat in the Hat. My current favorite is Doc McStuffins.

He loves to sing when we are out and about, driving around running errands. Because I have played the same two cd's in the car basically since his birth, he pretty much knows all of the 40+ songs by heart. There is nothing sweeter than hearing that precious little voice just belting out tunes with all the passion of an opera singer.

He loves school and has adjusted with no problem to his new classroom environment, which he attends from 9:00-12:00 two days a week.

He can spell "Stop," "Go," "Banks," and "Clemson." He also loves doing his "pluses." He can add 2+2 and 1+1 from memory and will add other numbers together when shown how to do so using his fingers. 

His imagination runs wild! His favorite things to pretend right now are that he is Daddy and is off to work to see his clients and that he is a "bad guy" who is also a hero. Swoon.

He is the sweetest, most caring big brother and is constantly trying to make his little sister laugh and hug and kiss her. 

He makes us laugh every single day. Oh, the things that come out of that boy's mouth...We are definitely rockin' the "why" phase, and I love it! I tell him all the time that I love that he is so inquisitive because that is how we learn. Based on the number of questions I hear per day, I'd say he could write an entire Encyclopedia (Side note: Remember when we actually had to look up information in a hard copy of an encyclopedia? Craziness).

Although he is certainly in the midst of that oh-so-fun stage of testing limits, he rarely requires time outs anymore and is usually a good listener. 

He is my little buddy, and there are no words for how much I love this child.

Raleigh, age 10 months

She also continues to be long and lean: She weighed 18.5 pounds (42nd percentile) and was 29.75 inches (98th percentile) at her 9-month well check. She wears 12-month clothing, Size 3.5 shoes, and Size 3 diapers. People often comment about how tall she is (Side note: A very nice gentleman looked at Raleigh and commented that "he" was such a good-natured baby when my family and I were out doing our annual Black Friday shopping trip, at which point his wife pointed out the gigantic pink bow on her head. No, sir, I do not cross-dress my baby.). 

She is still breastfed and nurses four times per day. She is also a good eater and eats only table food now, taking in three hefty meals a day along with a snack.

She takes two naps per day, which can range anywhere from 30-40 minutes each (which is most typical) or a couple of hours (very, very, very rare). She goes to bed at 8:00 pm and usually wakes up between 6:00 and 6:30 am, although she will hang out in her crib for a good 30 minutes or so before I come in at 6:45 am to nurse her.

She still just has two bottom teeth, with no signs of any others to speak of just yet. She no longer takes a paci, actually she hasn't for about 7 months now, and does not suck her thumb or fingers.

She is starting to walk! She has taken 5 steps without assistance but averages 2 to 3 on most attempts; however, she will rock that walk like nobody's business when holding on to just one of my fingers. Once she builds up her confidence, she'll be up and running!

She is able to say a handful of words, including Momma, Dada, ball, bubble, and bye-bye (while waving). I guess she's a fan of /b/ words so far.

She will point to "eyes" on command but no other body parts just yet. She will also give kisses when asked that will just melt your heart.

She LOVES to make people laugh. If she does something and someone laughs at her, she will do it over and over, looking at them each time she does it and waiting for the laughter in response.

She also enjoys dancing, bobbing her sweet little round head and bouncing up and down whenever she hears a good beat.

She is in the midst of having horrible separation anxiety. As in, will not let another person (besides her Daddy) hold her when her Momma is in the room. People have asked if I think she is struggling with this because she is around me all day, every day. Nope. This is a completely normal stage of development, one that her big brother really struggled with at her age, for many, many months, despite being in childcare full-time. Regardless, I'll be happy when it's over. I know other people besides her Daddy and me want to snuggle her.

She just loves her big brother so much. Her face lights up when she sees him, and she gives the best laughs to him. She loves chasing him around and having him pull her in her mini wagon. 

She is my sweet, dainty little lady, and she is just heaven on Earth.