Happy 4th Birthday, Mikey!

4 years old!  How is it possible that we already have a 4 year old?!?!?

Here's a summary of our 4 year old, Mikey:

Weight: 37 lb (61st percentile)

Height: 41.75" (78th percentile)

Popular phrases:  "tiny bit", "actually....", "almost...", "(person's name) will you play with me?" (in a very cute voice), "I fine" (when asked if he wants more of something), and asks to watch movies now on a daily basis;

Favorite songs to sing:  "For Boston" (sings it on his baseball ottoman in his room), "Winkle Winkle Little Star",  "a, b, c, d, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, x, y and z.  now i know my ABC's next time won't you sing with me" (Mikey's version).

Favorite playtime toys and books:  Loves cars, pirates, puzzles, Legos, his castle and now dragons.  Favorite books include "King Jack and the Dragon", "Dragons Love Tacos" (Mommy's new favorite book, too!) and other books vary ("Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Llama Llama series, Cars Look and Find book, How I Became A Pirate);

2 crushes: Cousin Emily and Timmy's (girlfriend) Emily;

Mikey is still attached to his lovey (at home) but now it is effecting his mouth/teeth so we are going to have to bid farewell to them soon.  (He can still fall asleep at Eva's without it!)  

Eating is getting better.  Mikey will eat all of the food I send to Eva's (meat too!) even though he will resist it here at home (he used to say "I not like that" but it has phased out thank goodness).  I am no longer making Mikey is own dinner and will now have to eat what we are having.  His favorite foods are very toddler appropriate: pancakes, cereal with milk and fruit, waffles, bacon & sausage, pizza, chicken nuggets, fish sticks, raw veggies, cheese, yogurt (with granola) and carbs (breads, muffins, pasta, etc).  He recently ate three servings of tacos (made with ground turkey) thanks to the "Dragons Love Tacos" book.  Now we just need to add more books to the series like: "Dragons Really Love Chicken Cutlets" and "Dragons Also Love Mommy's Meatloaf"!

From a motor perspective, Mikey has a hard time figuring out what to do with his body.  His balance is limited and his movements aren't well coordinated for things like hopping on one foot, walking on a line, galloping, skipping and riding a bike.  Hopefully with lots of practice this spring/summer in our new yard these motor skills will be achieved.  Mikey is beginning to take more of an interest in coloring and is now doing a better job of coloring a specific object instead of scribbling all over the paper.  He will even color the the object in its' appropriate color (ie: Peter Pan is green).  We are working more on him paying attention to the lines and staying within the border.  He can recognize the letters in his name and can produce the letter "E" independently.  I have started a "letter of the week" activity for us to work on identifying and recognizing letters as well as using his fine motor skills to color the letters, cut letters out of magazines, etc.

Mikey's language is still developing at its own pace.  He recently began speech services again with Margeaux (after we did some reaching out to our new insurance company).  Mikey still has a hard time recalling previous events or even elaborating on a specific topic.  He still speaks in short phrases and you need to ask him a lot of questions to get information.  I believe this is a very sensitive area for him and he feels pressured to say things correctly.  If he feels too much pressure, he gets upset or just sits and says nothing.  Other times he runs away.  He is the most chatty with us when we are home together.  When company arrives he is a tad more shy (depending on who it is) and when we are out in public is his quietest times.  Then there are other times when I just want to say, "Mikey, be quiet!".  He does a lot of asking questions---sometimes the same questions over and over again ("Why?") or questions that he can physically see the answer to ("Mommy, what are you doing?" as he sees me changing Nicholas' diaper for example).

Speaking of Nicholas, Mikey is an exceptional big brother.  When Nicholas is upset he will sing our song to him or bring him a toy.  He gives lots of hugs and kisses (sometimes needing a reminder to be "gentle") and always notifies me when Nicholas is crying.  When talking about us doing things together as a family, Mikey will now incorporate Nicholas into the discussion.  He is going to be a very protective and loving big brother.  And his little brother thinks the world of him already.  You can see it in the way Nicholas looks at Mikey.  It is a look that none of us get from him.  Amazing.

Happy Birthday, Mikey!  (When we told you this the weekend of your birthday your response was, "Happy Birthday" instead of "thank you"! Ha!)  Daddy and I cannot believe you are already 4 years old yet it is hard to think about life before you were a part of ours!  We love you so much!  This is going to be an exciting year for you!

xoxo