Today is December 8th and Will's half birthday!
(P.S. - I started this on Dec. 8th but I realize I'm not posting till the 9th)
Our boy is three and a half and we are still continuing to grasp that he is so not a baby anymore! In fact, he has had a huge growth spurt in the past six months!!! His knees are bent a little in this picture, but we measured him today (using a tape measure first, not just the growth chart) and he has grown 1 3/4" since June! That is the same amount of height increase as between his second and third birthdays! So he's literally growing twice as fast this year! (Side note: every sentence in this paragraph so far ends in an exclamation point... can you tell I'm surprised??)
That change is really evident in his pants length since we tried them all on before the start of the fall season. Many of the 3T pants seemed to need rolling then and now they fit him just right. And, for some reason, every time I look at his bare feet, it hits me that he is just so BIG now. Where did his little baby feet go?
That change is really evident in his pants length since we tried them all on before the start of the fall season. Many of the 3T pants seemed to need rolling then and now they fit him just right. And, for some reason, every time I look at his bare feet, it hits me that he is just so BIG now. Where did his little baby feet go?Speaking of bare feet, that seems to be one of Will's little quirks. I'm not sure how common that is among kids, but he hates wearing socks in the house. He ALWAYS removes them no matter who's house we're in and no matter how cold it is. We can usually talk him into wearing slippers for a little while, but even those come off pretty quickly. Another one of his clothing quirks is that he is constantly pushing his long sleeves up above his elbows. It just seems to be habit. He never leaves long sleeves down anymore.
Another change I've noticed in the past couple months (which has probably been more of a gradual thing) is that he is able to remember things so well. I know I've mentioned before that he has always had a good memory - especially with things that are of interest to him - but now he is able to tell me what he had for snack at school or what a book was about that we read over a week ago, etc. He will even remember what color shirt someone was wearing the last time he saw them! This is great for his reading comprehension skills too as he is able to retell me a story that we've read even if I question whether or not he was listening. It seems that not much gets by him without making a mental note even if he doesn't seem to be paying attention.
Some of Will's current interests include:
1) Reading, of course! By that, I mostly mean listening to Craig or me read to him, but Will has really improved his own reading skills lately! He is still sounding out the letters to make words but getting much better at blending those sounds so that he's able to read them as words more quickly. And also quick enough that he can understand the sentence as a whole. I never really explained vowel sounds in any depth to him, but he knows if I say "that's a long O" that he should read it as a long /O/ sound. He's also grasping that "e's" are silent at the end of most words and that certain letter "chunks" (digraphs such as "th", "sh", "ou", "oo", etc.) work together to make common sounds, which we talk about in similar words. He's also remembering some sight words such as "the" and "and". We recently got two new beginner reading books that he was able to read (to me) about 80% on his own. I can tell that he's really feeding off the excitement of this improving skill - he LOVES being praised - but he still really loves being read to as well. Especially with the Magic Tree House series. I'm in no hurry to lose this special activity together because I enjoy it too and I think my reading more advanced books to him will help him continue to love books and want to reach that higher level of reading.
2) State, geography and cardinal directions. The USA place mat is often the spawn of most conversation about states, but he also loves his floor puzzle, wall maps and globe as well. Will now knows the names and locations of many U.S. states as well as something those states are known for. He's also very interested in directions and likes to point out which states are south of Ohio or on the west coast, etc. Oh, and for some reason, he is still in love with the state of Oklahoma - haha! - and always claims that it is his favorite state behind Ohio. I bought him a small "children's first atlas" for Christmas and am excited to see how he likes it.
3) This love of the states has also spawned a new interest coins. He and Craig sort through the quarters in Will's piggy bank and point out which state each is from and what pictures are on the coins. Until just recently, Craig and Will were on a hunt for an Oklahoma quarter. But thankfully, Aunt Kelly found one for them. :)
4) Singing! Another thing that Craig and Will do together is sing and make up songs. To anyone who knows Craig, this may sound shocking because he definitely did not inherit his mother's singing voice, but Craig loves to be goofy with music and invent silly songs with Will. Will totally engages in this and together they just build on each other's verses. It's ridiculous and funny.
5) Much more imaginative play. I LOVE this! I had hoped that Will would finally start to enjoy one of the purist pleasures of childhood: imagination! And he's finally self-creating his play time around inventive and imaginative activities. But now that he's doing it, I've realized my total lack of interest in most of this type of play. Well, not total lack, I guess. I don't mind role-playing from time to time, but having ridiculous conversations/dialogues between two dinosaur figurines is really NOT my cup of tea. Still, I try to oblige him because I know it's important. Craig is better at it though. I prefer more logical play, I guess. But both are very valuable.
6) Will's continued love of animals has brought him to his current fascination of classifying them into different categories, i.e nocturnal/diurnal, herbivore/carnivore/omnivore, and also by their habitats: forest, farm, African plains, etc. He understands and says all these big words so clearly! And you should hear him spout off the names of various dinosaurs: brachiosaurus, teradactyl, tyrannosaurus rex, triceratops, velociraptor, etc. (He knows which of those are herbivores and carnivores as well.) Hmm... I'm thinking that a dinosaur museum visit might need to be in our future!
School Updates:
Will continues to enjoy school days. He and his classmates seemed to develop new friendships quickly and the teachers have really been working on taking turns and cooperating with others. I'm sure sharing is a constant point of learning as well. :)
This is an old picture from the first day of school that I'd forgotten to post. You can't see Will that well (he's behind the two girls in front) but I think it's a cute picture and I love the light. Behind Will are two of his closest friends Austin and Jacob. I don't think his other buddy Luke was there on the first day. Also, Lily is the second girl in line and we hear about her often as well.
(Another old picture.)
Another change I've noticed in the past couple months (which has probably been more of a gradual thing) is that he is able to remember things so well. I know I've mentioned before that he has always had a good memory - especially with things that are of interest to him - but now he is able to tell me what he had for snack at school or what a book was about that we read over a week ago, etc. He will even remember what color shirt someone was wearing the last time he saw them! This is great for his reading comprehension skills too as he is able to retell me a story that we've read even if I question whether or not he was listening. It seems that not much gets by him without making a mental note even if he doesn't seem to be paying attention.
Some of Will's current interests include:
1) Reading, of course! By that, I mostly mean listening to Craig or me read to him, but Will has really improved his own reading skills lately! He is still sounding out the letters to make words but getting much better at blending those sounds so that he's able to read them as words more quickly. And also quick enough that he can understand the sentence as a whole. I never really explained vowel sounds in any depth to him, but he knows if I say "that's a long O" that he should read it as a long /O/ sound. He's also grasping that "e's" are silent at the end of most words and that certain letter "chunks" (digraphs such as "th", "sh", "ou", "oo", etc.) work together to make common sounds, which we talk about in similar words. He's also remembering some sight words such as "the" and "and". We recently got two new beginner reading books that he was able to read (to me) about 80% on his own. I can tell that he's really feeding off the excitement of this improving skill - he LOVES being praised - but he still really loves being read to as well. Especially with the Magic Tree House series. I'm in no hurry to lose this special activity together because I enjoy it too and I think my reading more advanced books to him will help him continue to love books and want to reach that higher level of reading.
2) State, geography and cardinal directions. The USA place mat is often the spawn of most conversation about states, but he also loves his floor puzzle, wall maps and globe as well. Will now knows the names and locations of many U.S. states as well as something those states are known for. He's also very interested in directions and likes to point out which states are south of Ohio or on the west coast, etc. Oh, and for some reason, he is still in love with the state of Oklahoma - haha! - and always claims that it is his favorite state behind Ohio. I bought him a small "children's first atlas" for Christmas and am excited to see how he likes it.
3) This love of the states has also spawned a new interest coins. He and Craig sort through the quarters in Will's piggy bank and point out which state each is from and what pictures are on the coins. Until just recently, Craig and Will were on a hunt for an Oklahoma quarter. But thankfully, Aunt Kelly found one for them. :)
4) Singing! Another thing that Craig and Will do together is sing and make up songs. To anyone who knows Craig, this may sound shocking because he definitely did not inherit his mother's singing voice, but Craig loves to be goofy with music and invent silly songs with Will. Will totally engages in this and together they just build on each other's verses. It's ridiculous and funny.
5) Much more imaginative play. I LOVE this! I had hoped that Will would finally start to enjoy one of the purist pleasures of childhood: imagination! And he's finally self-creating his play time around inventive and imaginative activities. But now that he's doing it, I've realized my total lack of interest in most of this type of play. Well, not total lack, I guess. I don't mind role-playing from time to time, but having ridiculous conversations/dialogues between two dinosaur figurines is really NOT my cup of tea. Still, I try to oblige him because I know it's important. Craig is better at it though. I prefer more logical play, I guess. But both are very valuable.
6) Will's continued love of animals has brought him to his current fascination of classifying them into different categories, i.e nocturnal/diurnal, herbivore/carnivore/omnivore, and also by their habitats: forest, farm, African plains, etc. He understands and says all these big words so clearly! And you should hear him spout off the names of various dinosaurs: brachiosaurus, teradactyl, tyrannosaurus rex, triceratops, velociraptor, etc. (He knows which of those are herbivores and carnivores as well.) Hmm... I'm thinking that a dinosaur museum visit might need to be in our future!
School Updates:
Will continues to enjoy school days. He and his classmates seemed to develop new friendships quickly and the teachers have really been working on taking turns and cooperating with others. I'm sure sharing is a constant point of learning as well. :)
This is an old picture from the first day of school that I'd forgotten to post. You can't see Will that well (he's behind the two girls in front) but I think it's a cute picture and I love the light. Behind Will are two of his closest friends Austin and Jacob. I don't think his other buddy Luke was there on the first day. Also, Lily is the second girl in line and we hear about her often as well.
(Another old picture.)They've continued to work on number recognition and counting as we've seen from the projects he brings home. Also, at home, Will and I continue to work on double-digit number recognition (being able to read them aloud) and place value - which number is bigger or smaller.
At the end of October, the students had a Halloween party where everyone dressed up and they trick-or-treated in the hallway.
Haha! Will's three best buddies all dressed up as Buzz Lightyear!! I'm surprised (and pleased) that he hasn't reached the age (or perhaps personality) type yet to be jealous of this or of being different. When I asked Will what his favorite costume was that day, he actually said it was his friend Payton who dressed up as a horse. :) I like that he held onto his true interest despite the obvious popularity of everyones' favorite astronaut. ;) Aren't these boys cute?
Such a sweet, sweet, lover boy!!!
At the end of October, the students had a Halloween party where everyone dressed up and they trick-or-treated in the hallway.
Haha! Will's three best buddies all dressed up as Buzz Lightyear!! I'm surprised (and pleased) that he hasn't reached the age (or perhaps personality) type yet to be jealous of this or of being different. When I asked Will what his favorite costume was that day, he actually said it was his friend Payton who dressed up as a horse. :) I like that he held onto his true interest despite the obvious popularity of everyones' favorite astronaut. ;) Aren't these boys cute?
For part of November, they worked on a unit called "My Family" where each of the kids brought in a picture of their family and talked about each member. It was a focus on how each of the students held a special place in their family and together they created a large "family tree" on one wall using everyones' pictures.
The end of November until present has been a focus on "Manners Please" because of the upcoming holiday. Will does pretty well with "please" and "thank you" but often needs reminding for "I'm sorry" and "excuse me". ;)
They've done some fun art projects and continued practice using scissors and writing their names. Our current goal is to get Will's two "l's" to be written in lowercase now. Haha! Our local school district uses D'Nealian print style so I'll have to brush up on the specifics of that (i.e. tails on the ends of letters and slight slant to the right). Have I mentioned I love the preschool newsletters for all this information? :)
Behavioral issues:
Will continues to have phases of difficulty falling asleep at night. It happened in October after my last "Will update", then got better, and is now worse again. He is staying awake in his bed until after 10pm frequently even though he goes to bed between 8 and 8:30. This stems from difficulty falling asleep at nap time too. He will go down for nap around 1 or 1:30, stay awake until 3 in his bed and then wake at 5 acting totally exhausted. I was going to happily report that thankfully he seemed to be sleeping until 7:15 or 7:30 most mornings, but he's now back to 6:45- 7 the past couple days. It seems to be a bad cycle. I try not to let him sleep as late in the afternoon even if he does fall asleep late so as to not ruin bedtime, but it's difficult. And he definitely still needs that nap!! He frequently seems tired to me by mid- to late-morning, but then gets a second wind. I'm wondering if we just need to get him down for nap earlier? Like noon or 12:30... Maybe we're missing the boat and he's already had an adrenaline rush kick in following the drowsy late morning. That earlier nap would be extremely difficult though for our babysitter and impossible on school days. Hmm...
In October when he was struggling with this, we also noticed subsequent behavioral issues that were likely a result of lack of sleep: more tantrums, whining, poor listening, etc. It hasn't been as bad this time (fingers crossed!) so that's a relief.
Another behavioral thing I notice often is his desire to regress when he sees me praising something Sophie does or says. He loves that exaggerated response I give her when she does/says something new/better and then he tries to mimic even if it's too baby-ish for him. That's especially annoying when it comes to baby talk.
And finally, we are continually aware that Will just seems to be fearless of all people and most animals. (He is still afraid of the big dogs that run up to him at grandma and Aunt Kelly's houses.) While I'm glad that he is social and unafraid, it worries me that he would go to anyone, any time. He is completely comfortable around strangers, talks to everyone, and has zero qualms about wandering away from mom or dad. I know that "stranger danger" is something they address in school, but I'm not sure how confident I am in his likelihood of being cautious when that's just not in his personality. Does that make sense?
Other:
Will is still a purist when it comes to food. He likes things plain and one flavor at a time as opposed to recipes with multiple ingredients. He doesn't mind if his foods touch but he generally likes foods in the raw with nothing else done to them. The exception is baked goods - he does love muffins, pancakes and breads, etc. Will's favorite foods continue to be ALL fruits, most veggies, yogurt, meatloaf, crackers, sometimes noodles, pickles!, grilled cheese, peanuts, dried fruit, etc. He still doesn't drink much at any one time, although he will drink much more using a straw or a lid. One of Will's weaknesses is clumsy-ness... or I guess lack of coordination sometimes. He is still not as good as I think he should be at drinking from a regular cup - he gets sloppy and pours too much too fast, so I think that often makes him resort to being overly cautious and taking tiny sips.
Will is still a purist when it comes to food. He likes things plain and one flavor at a time as opposed to recipes with multiple ingredients. He doesn't mind if his foods touch but he generally likes foods in the raw with nothing else done to them. The exception is baked goods - he does love muffins, pancakes and breads, etc. Will's favorite foods continue to be ALL fruits, most veggies, yogurt, meatloaf, crackers, sometimes noodles, pickles!, grilled cheese, peanuts, dried fruit, etc. He still doesn't drink much at any one time, although he will drink much more using a straw or a lid. One of Will's weaknesses is clumsy-ness... or I guess lack of coordination sometimes. He is still not as good as I think he should be at drinking from a regular cup - he gets sloppy and pours too much too fast, so I think that often makes him resort to being overly cautious and taking tiny sips.
Along the same lines of coordination are a need to work on using scissors and writing. He definitely hasn't mastered either of those skills yet. Part of the reason is his lack of interest in anything art-related but I think he really just needs more practice.
One of my favorite things about Will is how loving he is. Such a charmer, that boy. Here are some of the things he said to me in the last week or so:
"You are so kind, mommy."
"Your skin is really pretty, mommy."
(I have no idea where that came from but I almost cried when he said it. I've always struggled with skin problems and I remember feeling such a sense of acceptance with those problems after having kids and realizing that they don't see those things and they love me no matter what. Sniff sniff.)
"You are awesome, mommy."
"You're the smartest, mommy."
"I love you so, so, soooo much, mommy."
(My head is huge when I hang out with Will! LOL)
Such a sweet, sweet, lover boy!!!In Will's next six months, I am looking forward to:
enjoying holidays with him
teaching him to read
teaching him to ride a bike
working on increased independence
winter and spring activities
etc.
Happy 3 1/2 years, William Dean!
We love you!!
3 comments:
What a little stud! He is adorable and I do think it is safe to say he is officially smarter than me... hehe
Love you Will!
Maybe Nana could bring him to my classroom so he could partner read with some of special ed kids who don't know the letter sounds yet!!!!!!! He knows digraphs and about super silent e, seriously????????????????? That is insane and amazing! I think he needs to come and spend some time with Uncle Dub and Aunt Casey so we can teach him the hunks and chunks from the phonics dance. He is totally ready! It really helps my second graders and since he is smarter than some of them, I'm sure it would help him too! I sure LOVE that little sponge!
I'm way behind on commenting on everyones' blog posts so this may be more of a general comment! What a smart little man you have, I'm sure Sophie is well on her way to the same! I love Sophie's little curls and her facial expressions (she and her little cousins make the cutest faces!) and Will is a cutie as usual! I feel like a broken record! cute cute cute! And I'm looking forward to Lyla experiencing all the fun stuff next year that will is doing in preschool!
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