The big news this month is... drum roll, please... we are fully potty trained. We were for a couple weeks and then she had a major setback weekend when we went up to the lake house, but since we have returned (knock wood), she has not had a single accident and it is all undies all the time now. I am very proud of her and happy to be leaving diapers behind. She is even keeping her nighttime pull-ups dry, so I suspect in a week or so, we can kick them to the curb as well. I can't even express how nice it is to only have one in diapers.
In other news, today was Sammy's first day of preschool, although it was not a drop-off day, but rather a parent participation day. I was very, very happy with the facility and the international vibe. There are gay parents and twins and diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds. Sam's teacher is Peruvian and seems very, very sweet and loving. Sam rolled into school, her sunglasses on in her boutique dress, acting like the coolest kid on the block. I was super proud, of course.
Sam's behavior this month has been a mixed bag. She is at once a polite and caring little lady, always worried about others and their needs, constantly asking if people are ok and offering to share, and a HOLY TERROR, screaming as loud as she can until she gets her way and generally causing a ruckus.
Her independence is unprecedented. Truly. Even today at school, almost every single parent and teacher remarked that she was "the most independent child" they had ever seen. Believe me, we hear it all the time. Everything is "all myself." She goes to the bathroom--no help allowed. She gets a treat--no help allowed. She buckles into her carseat, stroller, anything--no help. She puts on her shoes. You get the idea. And yes, I realize that every kid goes through this phase, but with Sam it is an extreme. We go nowhere and do nothing until she has satisfied her "all myself" urges.
She is still SUCH a daddy's girl, which is hard this month because, um, R's new job is crazy. Much longer hours, less time to devote to the kids. He no longer comes to doctor's appointments and even missed her first day of school. We are all still adjusting to the new regime, Sam especially. Sometimes in the middle of the day she will burst into tears.
"Why are you crying?" I ask.
"I just miss my daddy so much."
Ugh. Heartbreaking. For all of us.
On a lighter note, Sam is continuing her daredevil ways by always wanting to climb the highest and jump the most. She is almost always fired up and ready to have fun and I love her excitement this month. "OH MY GOSH!" she screams when something makes her happy. "You are my FAVORITE _____(fill in the blank)" she tells anything she likes. She has also become super social this month, making friends everywhere she goes. My child has zero shyness and marches right up to kids at the park, their parents, homeless people and their dogs. It is so cute and I love it and most of the time she makes friends, but it also sets her up for a bit of rejection and I have found myself getting a bit territorial lately when it comes to her and how people treat her. A 4-year-old who is mean to her? Well she could be shy. It's true. But she also earns my wrath. I can't help it. Mamma Bear is out in full force.
Sam has also taken to, um, swearing this month. Little Miss Potty Mouth stomps her little feet and says "Goddamit" when she is mad and called a fellow driver a "F'in B!#!" while we were in the car. Um, I have no idea where she gets this. I am mixed on how to handle it. Right now we ignore it, but we may need to try to curb it at some point. We'll see. I am not really that anti-cursing, but I do hope she understands the concept of time and place.
Each month I say that Sam is exhausting and each day she becomes even more so. She is a dynamo, always fired up about something, so, SO passionate, opinionated, bossy and funny as hell. If the "terrible twos" are a first adolescence then I have seen a bit of what we are in for with the real deal and I am scared. Excited and scared.
Some photos:
1 comment:
You must enter that last photo in a contest.
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