Celebration #2

Monday, December 15th-Triston's Real Bday

3 years old...12:03 am I discovered the following...visualize this one!

I walked into Grayson's room to check on him and noticed the fish tank sounded unusually loud. I look behind me and see every single item that once had a home on the same shelf as the fish tank was INSIDE the fish tank! And this is not a big fish tank, only 3 gallons I believe. Items now swimming in the tank included an entire container of fish food which was now empty (the whole floor of the tank was covered in food. I couldn't even see any of the flourescent pebbles that USED to be a great eye catcher), bottle of water drop solution, 3 filters and a small toy. The poor fish (which by the way is the longest living fish we have been able to provide a home for since we started this damn tank in Dec. '07 due to T's fav bday theme of Nemo last yr) was trapped in a corner between Ariel and Nemo statues. He was probably choking on fish food, the equivalent to a human choking on smoke during a housefire! All I could do was wake Charito from his sleep to tackle this mess. This was after I called out to T asking him what happened to the fish (yes, he was still awake). His response, " Um, I made a mess." Well, thanks for your honesty, kiddo! The promise I made to myself only hours before (I would not yell at him on his birthday) was already broken and it wasn't even 12:30 am. So, there was Charito and I cleaning out a disgusting fish tank in the middle of the night. I thought I was gonna gag! I had never participated in this cleaning ritual before. Honey, if you are reading this-Thank you for cleaning that thing every month! For someone who HATES poop and I mean any kind of poop I THANK U! I was so grossed out by it that I really wanted to flush the fish down the toilet (sorry, readers but he does not have a name. We gave up on that long ago when we were going through fish every 2 mos). But, I had to remember how much T really liked his Nemo fish tank and it's recent inhabitants, Ariel and Flounder. Charito helped convince me of this. So, there you have it! The ever memorable and initial antic of Triston's induction to the 3 yr old fraternity (or what I would like to rename Brat-ernity)! Welcome!

Now onto the mommy thoughts surrounding this big day!

I cannot even begin to describe how I felt when I woke up Monday morning. The same sentence repeated over and over again in my head, "He's three!" Where does the time go? I just kept thinking about how wonderful he is! His compassion and affection. His unbelievable awareness of himself and his surroundings. The endless knowledge he consumes on a daily basis. I am lucky. Charito and I are lucky. We done good! And to think we got a second chance at this with the birth of Grayson (which I thought may not come at all). I am truly blessed!

And at times when I think back, there is so much he does that I do not remember sitting down and taking the time to teach him. So much about what makes Triston TRISTON was effortless on my part. As if he took the wheel at some point. I think that goes along with what I have said before, "He can be exhausting." Not because of his need to occupy every second of my day or his behavioral issues or any other issues that could have landed in our laps. When I think about the students I teach and the parents I console and educate right alongside their child I can't help but think about blessings. I could have been or one day could be on the other side of that IEP table struggling with a child with special needs. But, gratefully my children are healthy and will some day have other battles in their lives to face. No, it's Triston's cognitive processing. So many times I feel like I cannot keep up with him as hard as I try to stay one step ahead. He jumps two feet! He simply amazes me! I am so proud (here come the tears)! He has been a rather easy child to raise so far. Do we have toddler attitude to the max?! Without a doubt. But I try to tell myself that as frustrating as it gets (and here's the part I tell myself after I try my best not to yell at him and oh am I guilty of losing it) that he is only exploring social situations, personal boundaries, emotional growth, and most importantly identifying who HE is and where he fits in this great big world. I am not claiming that T has not given me days of headaches and tears I would much rather forget, believe me! I am just stating that overall he makes motherhood appear seamless sometimes.

He IS my eggroll! Plain and simple.

I consider myself a patient person (only with kids NOT with adults) and I am grateful that I can take my skills as a teacher and apply the structured strategies that work oh so well toward motherhood. But it is not only what I learned "educationally". It is what I have been good at since a young age. KIDS. Actually, that is ALL I am good at. That is a scary and lonely situation, but I'll save that for another post. Charito is a huge part of this. My teammate in the smorgasbord of life. He is just as amazing as the kids! Regardless of what his childhood held, he continues to blow me away with his paternal awesomeness! It is as if he wakes up each morning and says, "Okay, what am I gonna do today to make it better for my kids than yesterday?" Extradordinary! What also helps is what I have remembered to carry on from my own childhood. My parents were strict but flexible. You earned your keep. Prove to them you could be trusted and you could have the world, Harper-style. I will never forget it. And isn't it crazy that we do not see this bucket of knowledge we already possess from our parents until we BECOME parents ourselves?! Safe to say God knows what he/she is doing that's for sure!

So as those thoughts rummaged through my head all day (on top of preparing the house for a lil' bit of company later that night for pizza and cake) we pretty much went about a slow and lazy day. It was unfortunate T woke up crabby and needy. The weekend of parties caught up with him. But on a day like this, a day I held him for the first time 3 yrs ago, I didn't mind the whiney mommy calls. The need for big squeezes and "noses" (he and I rub our noses together for quiet kisses). I knew a nap would make him feel better later in the day and it did. He woke up ready to see Ayden! No other company mattered at that point. Sorry everyone else! He was excited.

Here is a play by play of the day.

11:00 am

T trying to assemble his circus from PapaC all by his lonesome. "Don't worry mom. I fix it in no time! You just match the pieces. See the pictures" Thanks Handy Manny! I tried to put this gargantuan thing together but gave up! And I have put together plenty of ADULT furniture in my lifetime! I declared it a job for daddy. Then I declared naptime for all 3 of us!

12:00 pm

What an image to capture on T's bday of all days!

7:00 pm PARTY TIME

with Uncle Neal, Auntie Amy, Cuz Ayden, Uncle Mike,

Uncle Kevin and Auntie Maria

He received a pirate ship from Grandma and Bonka.

They watched him open it via webcam from Arkansas!

This gift was from Amy, Neal and Ayden.

It is a Little Einsteins globe. You direct the ship to travel around the world and at each destination you hear a tidbit about that country. It is very creative! Becky, you gotta get it for Jack. Especially bc I remember one play date when Jack told T to send rocket to Egypt for the pyramids and T said, "No thanks. We are going to Mexico first."

Mommy and Daddy bought him a Smart Cycle. Interactive/physical activity video game (my compromise to any other video game system out there. I will tackle that battle in a few more years). He was so excited and yelled, "My bicycle!" We saw this at ToysRus and had to get it. As soon as he tried it at the store he started pedaling! I couldn't believe it, considering he had been struggling w/ a trike all summer. He had the idea down and could tell us what he needed to do but I really think the horizontal-like positioning of a trike over a higher seated bike combined with his short legs posed a problem for our little shorty. With this he had no problem at all. Go figure! And yes, there was Charito assembling this thing at 10 pm w/ the help of his supervisor Kevin. T had a few turns before bedtime and then passed out! Another bday celebration complete and only one more to go. Are you tired yet, because I am? But the one on Sunday is the best in my opinon and I cannot wait to see T's expression when he walks into Pump It Up.

Stay tuned!