Can you believe my baby is turning 4!!! It's amazing how fast time has gone by these last few years. Although I still feel a bit like a newcomer to Utah, Joey wasn't even crawling when we moved here. The problem is that as he gets older, so do I. M
y days of mothering babies are gone and I find myself missing it...at times. Oh, I don't miss the hard stuff, like never getting any sleep or things like that, but I love holding sleeping babies, and the sweet spirit that they bring into the house. Joey was a pretty good baby, although as a 2 and 3 year old he definitely gave me a run for my money! I've learned a few things from my older three so have done a few things better (I hope) and of course, like us all, I've made a few mistakes. I've made the mistake of letting him out of the shopping cart a few times; now keeping him contained when he knows freedom is so close is hard. One thing I've learned is the magic of the word "maybe!" "Can we get a treat after dinner?" "Maybe!" "Can we watch a movie tonight?" "Maybe!" "Can we go to Chuck E Cheese?" "Maybe!" No broken promises when things don't happen, and no reasons for screaming because you've left the box of possibility open! My other favorite (with younger ones) is "Maybe for your birthday!" That does work like a charm with Joey. Either, if said with enough excitement and hope works like a charm...they won't even realize they got shut down! But Joey has been so much fun, most of the time. He has definitely been the most expensive of all my kids in regards to all the things he has broken, but he can make us laugh and laugh too. It is so fun watching him grow up, and his little cheeser smile always makes my heart melt. He loves to hang with his older brothers and tease his older sister. What a boy--loves guns, rocks, dirt, trucks, anything manly. Joey has taught me to not sweat the small stuff---and he's caused a lot of "small stuff." I love having him in our family.
His party went well. It was just family. We had an Avengers theme--he's totally into the Avengers right now. I didn't get any real pictures since I was just enjoying myself, but here he is with his dad opening presents.
He wanted Avengers cupcakes so I delivered like the great mom I am. He blew the candle out so fast I didn't even get a shot! And just like Jacob used to be, he didn't want any cake or ice cream. What a silly kid!
Joey loved his party, and it was so much fun.
1 comment:
Your idea of saying "maybe" is brilliant! Just absolutely brilliant! I think it should be written up in every child raising book that is written. It is such a simple way to handle all their requests....and like you said, no broken promises if it doesn't happen. That is just so great.
And Joey is such a cute little boy....mischievous, active, sneaky, into everything, stubborn.....but that's all "small stuff", right? He is a sweetheart!!
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