A Few Weird Things

Today was exhausting.  Not bad in any way, but I'm bone tired.  And the rest of the week isn't looking any less tiring. 

Here's a few weird things that have been happening around here lately. 

• Both boys have birthdays withing the next few days.  Sambo (the littler one) thinks he's turning 7 because Buddy is.  I'm sure this is normal with a younger sibling, but I think it's hilarious.  He had to have a speech evaluation the other day and one of the questions was to see if he knew his age.  He said he was 7 and will not be convinced otherwise.

• Buddy added "baby sister" to his Christmas list.  We've talked about adopting in generalizations because the last thing he needs is more pressure in his life.  Plus he has no concept of time and the wait will be long.  However, when he added a sister to his list, I talked to him a little more about it so he's clear that we are actively hoping to adopt.  I feel better that he knows and I don't have to talk in generalizations any more.  I hope his faith helps it happen.  I'm sure it will.

• Everyone in this family is bossy beyond belief.  Either this is a requirement for being one of us, or it's learned.  I can't decide which is most true.  Anyway, we babysat a 1-year old baby the other night and my boys both thought they were in charge of the baby.  Sambo kept telling her to "be quiet." And when she cried, Buddy spent the entire time trying to get her to stop.  It was equally cute and disturbing.

• After babysitting the baby I asked my boys if they are ready for a baby sister.  Sambo said "yes."  Buddy sighed and said, "No.  It's going to be so much work and I already have so many things to do."  I found that incredibly funny.  (Refer previous comment about bossiness.)

• Today Buddy was looking through some toy ads, circling what he wants for Christmas (although I'm almost done shopping).  He informed me he was circling some DS games.  He doesn't have a DS and isn't getting a DS, so I thought that was pretty interesting.  He also informed me he was circling a few games that are for older kids, "But who cares.  Nobody pays attention to those labels anyway."  !!!!!!  Who taught him about game ratings?  He doesn't play video games, so how would he know anything about them?  And if he's talking to his friends enough about video games to learn about the rating system, why is he not more interested in playing them?  It's all good.  I'm glad he doesn't play them.

• I wanted to go to the gym tonight and planned to meet G there at 5:30.  That's like the worst possible time of day to be driving around town, so I left super early -- which involved hurrying like a crazy woman all afternoon to get to the three stores I needed to go to, put away groceries, get homework done, and make dinner.  While I was changing into my gym clothes, I put Buddy in charge of making sure Sambo got his shoes on, coat on, and got buckled in the car.  When I got downstairs, I was overjoyed to see the boys both sitting in the car, all buckled in, and waiting patiently.  So off we went.  We rolled into the parking lot just in time to meet G.  However, when I got out of the car, I realized Sambo wasn't wearing any shoes.  Back home we went, arriving 50 minutes after we left.  No workout done.  And a colossal waste of time.  I was mildly annoyed with Buddy for forgetting Sambo's shoes, until I remembered that he's not quite 7 years old, and although he thinks he's in charge, he's not.  I am, and I need to remember to check things like that before we leave the house.  Note to self.

• We've been in denial about Sambo growing up and turning 3 in a few weeks.  Like major denial.  We still call him our baby and assume he's clueless and helpless (which he's not).  I realized last week that I've been putting him in shoes two sizes too small and he actually fits better in size 3T clothes, rather than the 2T outfits I've been dressing him in.  When did he get so big?????!!!!!!  This is so sad.  I hate it when my kids grow up and I'm taking him turning 3 really, really hard. 

• G took Buddy into a dressing room with him last week to try on a shirt.  Buddy told him he liked the shirt, if he was trying to dress up like a cub scout leader. 

• Buddy hasn't lost any teeth and doesn't even have any even close to being loose.  As of his last dentist appointment in July, he's not even close.  He's really sad about this news, but we are so thrilled!  He's so cute with his baby teeth (and remember?  we're in denial about our kids growing up).  He is, however, finally sprouting two of his 6-year molars, just in time to turn 7 this week.  He says he can't feel anything, but they are really swollen and red.

• Buddy's fingernails were getting long so last night G started teasing him that maybe we should paint them like a girl.  Buddy had no problem with that, and suggested we paint them black, like Ethan in his school class.  (Ethan was a ninja for Halloween and painted his nails black.)  I'm not sure what disturbed me more.  The fact that Buddy was willing to paint his nails, the fact that Buddy wanted to paint them black, or the "since when do we follow every whim and trend" lecture that came out of G's mouth.

• Sambo and Buddy can finally carry on a conversation and we are so happy on so many levels.  We've only been waiting for 6-7 loooong years for this day to come.  Buddy has had diarrhea of the mouth since he was a year old and he's been in desperate need of someone to talk to other than me.

• Have I mentioned I have never EVER clipped my kids' nails?  I have no interest, so I just don't.  Now that Shauna has moved, I'm not sure how G is going to keep up on that task.  Oh wait, he's not keeping up. 

• Sambo has been potty-trained for a couple months now.  It was brutal getting him motivated, but once we figured out his "currency," we haven't looked back.  He's been a pro and has had very few accidents, and hasn't had any for about six weeks. Does that mean we're out of the woods?  He's mostly dry at night and takes himself when he has to go.  It's been amazing.  So what was his "currency?"  Well, currency!  I had tried literally everything to motivate him and one day he said he wanted money.  So, that's what I gave him.  He'd get "money" (a penny) for pee and "big money" (a nickel, dime, or quarter) for poop.  That's all it took. 

• We saw a group of three little girls, approximately Buddy's age at Burger King the other day.  I asked him which one was prettiest (does that make me an awful parent???) because I'm curious about his taste and I'm curious at what age boys can tell a truly "pretty" girl.  One of the girls fit the "pretty and feminine girl" mold with long blond hair, a sparkly headband, and a ruffly shirt.  She was very cute, I have to admit.  Sure enough, he got super embarrassed concerning that girl and was un-phased by the other two.  I found the entire conversation fascinating.

• Every time G goes to Costco, he forgets to get half the list.  I'm not criticizing, I'm just making an observation.  (I haven't forgotten I'm the one that took Sambo to the gym without shoes...)  It's the craziest thing.  I think he gets distracted by the samples.  I guess I should be glad he happily goes to Costco.  Wait!  Typing this out just gave me some new insight.  All of a sudden I just realized that he enjoys shopping so much at Costco he purposely forgets half the list, so he can go back a few days later.  Do you think?