Our Carter

Carter has this thing where after stories at bedtime, he likes to have a "talking" time.  We turn off the lights, I lay down in bed with him and he asks me questions or I quiz him on opposites (his choice).  We don't do it every night because, let's face it, by bedtime Mommy is really ready for some peace & quiet and sometimes a nice beer.  But, on the nights when we do have talking time together it never fails to be memorable.   My Facebook friends will recognize some of these...some of the highlights from recent conversations with Carter:

~Tonight Carter had some things he wanted to discuss before bedtime. It went something like this:
"Why do strawberries get their seeds on the outside?" I was honest and told him I had no idea. "How did the doctor cut you open to get me and Davis out of you?"  Just as I had finished explaining the anesthesia and how it allowed me to not feel the surgery he moved on to: "How do batteries make things work?" I told him that would be a better question for Daddy.  :-) And then, "How does apple juice get into the bottle?"  Gotta love how his little mind works.  I have to admit, he makes me think!

~I was explaining to Carter that today is election day and that there will be extra people at his school because it is a polling place. When I told him that we are voting for who will be President, he got a big smile on his face and said "I hope I win!".

~Out of nowhere, Carter asked me: "Where did the Earth come from?"  I told him that God made the Earth and all of us and all the animals and plants.  He replied "Mom, I don't think that one person could make all of this."  So, I took a deep breath and went on to explain how amazing God is and that he is responsible for all of the good things that happen to us and helps us when bad things happen and that's why he is special enough to have made the Earth.  LONG PAUSE from Carter.  Then I went on to say: "Some people, called Scientists, believe that our Earth was created by stars in outer space colliding."  Carter immediately said "Yeah Mom, that sounds more like how it really happened."

~Today in the car (another favorite talking spot) Carter asked me when & why Sean and I got married.  I told him that we got married because we loved each other and we still love each other a lot, even though we've been married for almost seven years.  Carter thought about that for a minute and then said "That's weird."  He's asked me before if he could marry me when he gets older (So sweet, right?) but I've explained to him that since I'm already married to Daddy, he has to find someone else to marry.  Today, he told me that when he gets older he will find a best friend to marry and love forever.  Wow--I couldn't be more proud!  I am doing my best to prepare these boys to be awesome husbands one day.  Not an easy job, people!

Carter's 2012-13 Preschool Picture

Another update: Carter had his five year well check last week and everything went...well.  :-)  He is small, 25% weight and 30% height, but following his own little growth curve just fine.  He meets and exceeds developmental milestones which makes us so very proud.  We are still working on some Sensory Processing issues with him (I like to call them "quirks") but for the most part they are mild.  For example, simple things like haircuts are a big deal for him because he actually feels the itchiness of the cut hairs as painful.  Luckily we don't go for haircuts every day and I can usually coach and/or bribe him through it.

We also had parent/teacher conferences last week with his Preschool teachers.  They had nothing but good things to say about Carter in school and again suggested we look into testing him for the "Early Access" program in our school district.  This was something that was mentioned by his teachers and the school social worker last year, but we opted to just move on with the plan to keep him in Preschool another year and send him to Kindergarten when the district age guidelines dictate.  Well, it is becoming more obvious that he may be ready to move up.  His reading level is making it difficult for his teachers to find activities that keep Carter engaged while still keeping the rest of the classroom occupied with a teacher-led story time.  

Our main concern, and one the school recognizes as well, is that Carter is socially and emotionally very much a Preschooler.  With that being said, we are planning to have him tested this Spring to see if he meets criteria for Early Access.  That does not obligate us to put him into a different school, or skip Kindergarten as one educator mentioned, but it will help Sean & I  to better know what Carter's strengths are and pursue our options.  I have been pretty stressed out by all of this and just want to do what is best for Carter.  So far, he has no idea that he is different from other kids his age & I want to keep it that way.  I know, I am worrying way too much about all of this and should just be happy that people think our kid is gifted.  But, as his mom, I just want him to feel normal and have friends and be happy.  Hopefully, we can figure out a plan that gives Carter all of the above and challenges his mind as well.  He is such a neat kid and we love him so much.  

If These Walls Could Talk...

Just wanted to share some of the silly and endearing things that the boys have been saying lately.  I always think I am going to write these things down, then time gets away from me and the moment passes with no record of it.

----Carter----
Today, we had a salesman from a local dairy stop by to ask us about switching our delivery service.  The man was very kind (not the pushy salesperson type) and genuine, so I let him come in to give us some "samples".  He let Carter try the ice cold chocolate milk.  Carter took the cup and thanked him, then took it into another room to drink it.  He came back a few minutes later and said "Sir, this chocolate milk is delicious!".  I was so proud!  And our new salesman friend was so touched.  He used good manners, completely unprompted.  Way to go, buddy!

Last night at bedtime, Carter said to me "Mommy, I love you so much.  And I really like it when you give me hugs and kisses.  That makes me so happy."  What a sweet boy we have!

Yesterday at a play date Carter offered Blankie, his most prized possession, to our little friend Reece, who Davis had just hit (that's a whole other story).  I was surprised and very happy to hear that he was trying to comfort our friend with something so dear to his own heart.  Now if he could just teach some compassion to his brother...

--Davis--

We have been experiencing a lot of the "Terrible Twos" lately, aka: "Davis's Dark Side".  When he is in a bad mood, Carter and I tease him that he has the "Grumpy Grouchies".  It is usually followed with him going down for nap or eating a snack, or both!  Anyway, now he plays a game out of it saying "NO!  I not dumpy, YOU dumpy!"  It always makes us laugh, and usually improves his mood, even if it is temporary.

Sometimes Carter will just blurt out a line from a movie, chuckle, and move on.  The other night, he blurted out a line from the movie Toy Story, and Davis ran with it.  Davis kept repeating over and over again "Mrs. Uh-tato (Potato) Head, Mrs. Uh-tato Head, Mrs. Uh-tato Head..."  Then he would stop to laugh and continue to repeat it.  Like 50 more times.  I was having a hard time not cracking up, myself!

Davis loves to say "NO!" throughout the day.  Every day.  Just to exert his independence.  I'll ask him if he wants milk to drink.  NO!  Do you want juice? NO!  Do you want to have water?  NO!  Do you want to play Play-Doh?  NO! (Then, in a quiet voice.) Ummmm, dess (yes).  I love how he answers without really even stopping to hear the question.  What a stinker!!

We have our crazy, hectic, frustrated, "I Can't Take It Anymore!" parenting moments, just like everyone else.  But when Davis surprises me by saying "I dove you, Mom." or Carter wakes me up in the morning with a sweet little boy kiss, it makes me feel like I am the luckiest person in the world.  I love you too, boys.

Boys!

Sometime early this morning Carter wet the bed. We have been keeping him in undies overnight lately and this morning it caught up with us. Anyway, that's not the point of all this. I told him to take off his wet undies and PJ's and put dry undies on. So, he goes back into his room to change and this is how the conversation goes:

Davis: "pee pee pee pee pee pee pee pee"(the boy is fascinated by his pee pee...and others, apparently)

Carter: "No Davis, you can't touch my pee-pee. If you touch it, it will go pee pee on you and then you will be all wet, like I am. You can't touch my pee-pee. You can only touch your own pee-pee."

Needless to say, Sean & I were dying in the next room. It was a great way to start the day.

Keep It Comin' Boys

The boys have done/said some things the past few weeks that, I think, are blog-worthy. Since my memory is horrible, I am writing them here to refer back to when I need a good laugh/smile.

~Yesterday we ran errands and when we turned into the parking lot of our outdoor mall Carter said: "Mommy, are we going to the circle store (aka: Target) or the star store (aka: Macy's)? " He's my little shopper!

~While we were in St. Louis,we had the pleasure of Carter pooping in his pants at lunch. Out at a restaurant. With the wife of one of Sean's HS friends as our server. Fabulous. I took him into the bathroom to deal with the aftermath. This was the conversation when we got back to the table:
Sean: "Carter, did mommy have a talk with you in the bathroom?"
Carter: "No, she had a yell with me."
...it was not my finest mommy moment.


~The other night before bed, Carter turned to me and said "Mommy, your the BEST." That little stinker can be pretty darn sweet when he wants to be.

~I picked up Davis when I got home from work on Saturday morning & then started talking to Sean about how the night had gone. I noticed that Davis was pretty close to my face (usually he is busy looking around or trying to reach for something to snack on, etc.). When I finally stopped talking & looked at him, I saw that Davis was leaning in to give me a kiss! I have only gotten him to sporadically give me kisses when I ask for them, but never has he offered one on his own. I love it!!

~Of the few body parts Davis knows, one is his boy-part. That's right, he's 15 months old and already thinking like a teenager. He can point to his: mouth, ear, tummy, knee, foot and "pee pee". We are obviously so proud.

Buddies, continued

I put Carter in the crib with Davis this morning and the two of them jumped like little monkeys while I vacuumed their room. Ordinarily, I would not be writing about this. However, in the middle of holding Davis in a head-lock Carter said "You know brother, sometimes I love you." It was so sweet. I think in Carter's world the head-lock was really a hug. This is the first time he has said anything nice to his brother without some sort of prompting from us. Keep it up, buddy!

Funniness

Carter has been so funny lately that I thought I should write some things down for us to remember about these silly toddler times.

~~The other day Carter was looking kind of sad & I asked him what was wrong. He said "Mommy, I'm not wronging anything."

~If you ask Carter what he wants to be for Halloween, he consistently says "a caterpillar". Daddy even offered to make him a robot costume & Carter still insisted that he wanted to be a caterpillar. So, over the weekend I searched high and low online to find a caterpillar costume for him. Turns out there are only like three caterpillar Halloween costumes out there. One is a baby bunting and I refuse to pay $50 for the cute Eric Carle costume. Long story short, I looked into other options and found a "Super Why" (one of Carter's favorite PBS shows) costume that I thought Carter would love. I showed it to him online today and he was not impressed. He still says he wants to be a caterpillar. End of story, right? Not quite. Later when I was pushing Carter in the swing, he started mumbling something under his breath. I asked him what he was talking about and he repeated a little louder "I don't want to be a Super Why, I want to be a Carter!!!!" Maybe we will just wear orange & black this year...

funny guy

Carter has been saying so many funny things lately, I have been trying to write them all down. Who needs entertainment with a two-year-old around? Here are a few recent ones:

~When I wiped down his hands and face after dinner he said: "Thanks, baby!" Then the rest of the night, anytime I would help him: "Thanks, Honey Mom!".

~Davis broke into a sudden "mad" cry, and knowing it probably had something to do with Carter, I asked him what was wrong with his brother. Carter said: "Brother's head hit my book." Poor Davis.

~Sean was up in the attic working on something & Carter kept asking "Where did Sean go?" me: "You mean Daddy?" C: "Where did Sean My Daddy go?" me: "Daddy's up in the attic." (I was pointing to the ceiling) C: "You mean he's gone?"

~He loves to tell us when he's sad, which usually means that he's mad or frustrated because we have told him "No" about something. This morning I wouldn't let him get down from the table until he finished his breakfast. He said "Mommy, I'm sad. And I'm not happy, either."

questions

Carter has been saying so many funny things lately. We think his verbal skills are pretty impressive! He has started asking about what things "do". (Can you say future engineer?) Anyway, he will ask "Mommy, what does a fan do?" "Mommy, what does a car do?" and my favorite: "Mommy, what does a strawberry do?" As Sean pointed out last week, sometimes it is difficult to come up with an answer for him.


This morning he was asking me a series of questions at breakfast, so I asked him: "Carter, what does Mommy do?" He said "Mommy goes in the kitchen." Hmmm...an interesting answer since I am certainly no cook. But, I guess heating up hot dogs and unloading the dishwasher have made quite an impression! So, I decided to ask him "What does Daddy do?". Carter thought about it for a second (I was secretly hoping he would say "watch TV" so I could use that against Sean someday, but I guess Carter enjoys watching Myth Busters) then said "Daddy goes in the car". I think this is partly because we had just said "goodbye" to Sean as he left for work and got into his car, and partly because Sean often takes Carter out in the garage when he is working on the car. In any case, it was pretty cute!

Today, Carter walked into our bedroom and said: "Hi, my name is Carter". I told him I knew it was his name because I picked it! I guess he's ready for his first cocktail party!