Kiddo updates for June....
JASPER has been a joy this month. He wreaks the usual amount of 4 year old havoc but turned over a hidden angel leaf recently that makes it such a pleasure to spend time with him. This month we worked on behavior and independence.
I made him a "Star Chart" with four key things he needed to work on daily and could, in turn, earn a reward for: No whining, Quiet Rest/Nap, Listening & Answering, and Being Gentle to others--especially Hayden and friends at school. It really helped turn things around and by the 3rd week he was getting every star in every category, allowing him to get a big special prize at the end of the week!
On top of that, Jasper has been learning to do more things on his own such as: clearing his place from the table, putting away his shoes, buckling up in the car, and packing his own "park snack". He takes great pride in doing these things and I'm proud of him, too!
With all the Superhero themed movies out right now, and my own obsession & excitement with them, Jasper's attention became peaked and he made the transition from Princesses to Superheros as his new favorite thing. We are constantly talking about Superman, Spider-man, Hulk, Iron Man, Batman, etc. Who they "really" are, what powers they have, who their enemies are etc. Being a movie-geek comes in handy once again! :) We went to an exhibit at The Metropolitan Museum of Art called "Superheros: Fashion and Fantasy" that was mind blowing. Absolutely amazing. We were both awe struck (him by the life size statues of his new idols, me by the incredible fashion inspirations thanks to these characters). We shared a moment of silence in front of Iron Man--full on golden suit, glowing in the middle, standing tall and fantastic! There just weren't words.
Another new favorite is playing "Tortoise and the Hare" on the way to nap. I'm always the Hare, he's always the Tortoise. I stop mid-way up the stairs to "take a nap" while he crawls slowly on all fours past me saying "Slow and steady wins the race". And he does!
Pre-school ended mid-June and we're all excited about camp (2 days/week) and new summer friends in the Hamptons.
A highlight of the month was getting to be the privileged, sole audience member to Jasper's first puppet show. Before nap one day he got his wooden stool from the bathroom, draped a blanket over the top (for curtains) and attached a piece of tape to 4 "Backyardigan" stickers now turned puppets. When I entered the room he said: "Sit down, puppet show audience!" I took my seat and he proceeded to put on the best show I've ever seen. "Hello, my name is Tyron! I'm going to get my friend Uniqua!" In a low, rough voice, then "Hello, my name is Uniqua" in a high pitched girly voice. It was precious and hilarious. I was cracking up and he said "You like it?! You think it's funny?!" I emphatically told him "Yes!" to which he said, "I'm the one doing it, and I think it's funny too!" He's so much fun and I love the growing bond we have.
HAYDEN (13 months) is a handful. He went from being cutsie-chill baby to into-everything-whining-nightmare-toddler during the 3 weeks Jasper made his turn around to sweetness. Figures. At least they weren't both going crazy at the same time, that was nice of them. :)
Hayden's new skill this month is holding a sippy cup & bottle! He's also become a lot more verbal even if it's just baby blabber. He can say "Moo" for a cow and does a very high pitched noise in response to "What does a cat say?" that cracks us up. My 2 favorite new sounds. He says Mama, Dada, and Allayah (his main play date friend) very clearly and correctly associated. To get his point across when he wants something he'll point eagerly and say "Oh, Oh, Oh!" and then you'll say what he wants and he'll reply with a goofy grin and enthusiastic "Yeah!" If he then does not get what he wants he throws a FIT. That happens a good 50 times a day, if not more. Such a blast! He also tries to say "more" and does the correct Sign Language signal for it. He claps "Yay!", shoots arms up for "Hooray!", blows kisses, puts his finger to his mouth and says "shhh", and blinks his eyes when you ask him where they are. He could dig the same hole in the sand for an hour (and has) and loves the swings just as much. Although he's into EVERYTHING and you can't turn your back for a minute he's also totally adorable and you can't help but laugh. He still loves books and songs and has now taken to singing "Baa-Baa Ahh-Ahh" and humming the rest of the song (Baa-Baa Black Sheep) over and over. So cute. The most exciting news is....HAYDEN TOOK 4 STEPS ON JUNE 16th!!!! And then he never walked again. Ha! He went from the couch to me in 4 steps, after much coercing and bribery with the vacuum (he loves that thing), and then I yelped with excitement and he sat down and burst into tears. He has taken a couple more steps since, but still has no real desire. He'll get there, we're all just really anxious and want it to be NOW!
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