By: Revanche

My kids and notes from Year 6.4

May 25, 2021

Growth

This month’s discovery: I’m not going to be able to hang them upside much longer. They’re too big. O_O

Emotionally, they’ve made great leaps and bounds. Some steps forward and some back too, of course. They were practicing mindfulness and communicating what they felt and what they needed. They’re also practicing appropriate choices given time and place.

Culinarily, I’m puzzled how we ended up with a six year old who thinks that when we split food, it should be three ways equally. But they’ve always been that way. The real question is how did a 2 and 3 year old eat adult size portions??

Language

Words have meaning but in JB’s world, they’re all the wrong words: “hitball” for baseball. “Ketchup loaf” for meatloaf.

You’d think they weren’t familiar with the English language. But they’re reading tons! Alvin Ho, Geronimo Stilton, Amelia Bedelia for young readers, Kitty and the Sky Garden Adventure, Superman Family Adventures.

Responsibility

We’ve been refining JB’s responsibilities. We’re not adding a lot, just a few small things here and there, but focusing on having them do a better job of the jobs they do currently have because what’s passable work for a 4 year old isn’t for a 6 year old who has more dexterity and can have more attention to detail. Folding laundry, for one thing, has to be neater. They should be hanging up clothes in the right places where, before, it was fine for them to make it to any closet. Cleaning more thoroughly and taking charge of cleaning up their own bigger messes: It’s easy to be in the habit of doing the big stuff because we’re adults but we want to be mindful to keep building their skills.

We’re also working on pushing them to take the initiative, in chores and in entertaining themselves.

Life with Smol Acrobat

Eating: Smol has been authorized to start trying solids early. I don’t recall what this is based on, weight? Whatever it is, I love giving babies new foods to try. Their facial expressions (all disgust) are amazing!

This does give me pause wondering if we have headaches in our future, though. JB was a super enthusiastic eater and tried everything within reach, and then some. Smol has tasted rice porridge, rice, orange pulp, watermelon, salmon, scrambled eggs. Every single thing has gotten the same IGH UGH IGH face. It makes me laugh but also hope that this will shift because I do not want to fight with a kid over eating. I am taking deep breaths now telling myself that we’ll deal with however they are about food. As long as they get enough to feel their version of full and it’s reasonably nutritious then I will not get hung up on this. Trying to undo that kneejerk reaction now.

They do show a whole lot of interest in what I put in MY mouth. It just doesn’t translate to what I put in their mouth, even if it’s off my plate.

Sleeping: All of last month was horrific for naps. This month we had a few days in a row where they had a good series of morning naps and nothing else. Then some days where they had a decent morning and afternoon nap. It’s so hit or miss that we hold our breath every days. Nights are entirely useless. They get one good nap of 2-3 hours and then it’s a fight the rest of the night to keep them in bed and sleeping. They seem to live on a 24 hour period of napping.

It’s gotten so that I hold my breath whenever I lower them into the crib, like I’m going to my doom. Actually it starts before that. The moment they doze off in my arms and I think “awwww so peaceful and oh feck. Now I have to put them down. This could be a disaster.” Many many times, it is. There’s nothing like the icy grip on your heart when you’ve started to install them in the crib and their eyes pop wide open like one of those creepy dolls from the 80s whose eyelids would open or close depending on the angle you held the doll.

This is not cool.

We’ve gotten the nod to start sleep training and I’ll get into the weeds on that in the next update while we fumble through trial and error.

Reading: Smol is finally interested in books visually and not only as chewing material. They still try to eat them of course. But they also like the peek a boo books and especially like the ones with other babies on them. They lean forward and chuckle like they’re sharing secret baby jokes.

Laughing: Our new hobby is figuring out ways to get baby chuckles and giggles. JB is especially proud of their jungle sounds that always get a laugh. I’ve been testing consonants, they like the sounds of B, D and M. PiC lets them pet his face and hair and somehow that’s good for a burst of giggles.

Pupdate

JB has a game with Sera they like to call “fetch treat”. They stand in the backyard with a handful of treats and throw them for Sera to gobble up.

What’s not to love?

On a related note, Sera is “suddenly” rotund and needs to cut back on some calories.

On a semi related note, I thought it’d be fun to try training her to touch things. Except when I hold my hand out to her, she just sits and stares at me intently waiting for the treat. I accidentally trained her to think a held out hand is a command to sit. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Precious Moments

JB: Where did Hercules Mulligan hide?
Me: He didn’t hide, he just pretended he was on their side.
JB: So he could get information! For Washington.
Me: Yes.
JB: Yeah cuz where would he hide? In the toilet? That wouldn’t be a good place to hide.
Me: I’m not sure anyone would fit in the toilet.

*****

JB: I don’t mind if Baby cries at night. I just mind if I don’t have blankets.
Also JB: kicks off every blanket within an hour of falling asleep.

*****

JB: I’m trying to knock the bee off them without stabbing them with the sword!
Me: There is no way this doesn’t end in tears.

Smol Acrobat: fuss

Me to Smol: when you’re hungry, EATING HELPS

:: What’s your favorite way to elicit laughs from wee ones? When did you start doing chores without being told?

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