Milestones | SuburbanDaddy

Off To A Rough Start

Thing 3 began his soccer career this week in the Under 5 division of Loudoun Soccer known as Mini-Soccer. It’s his first experience playing organized sports although he has watched his brothers play soccer and baseball many times.

The 45 minute sessions consist of half drill time where everyone gets to practice with their own ball, and the second half there is a “game” with two sides all chasing the same ball. At the end the team gets snacks which is the highlight of their day. ?See if you can pick out Thing 3 in this photo.

Here’s a clue: ?There is only one kid NOT wearing the team’s red shirt that was handed out at the start of the game. ?Yes, that would be Thing 3. ?Picking the shirt he wears each day is a painful process that only he can decide. ?Do you really think he’ll put on a different shirt just because all the other kids do it? ?Please. ?I suppose being a non-conformist is a good thing.

You’ll also notice all the other kids are chasing a single ball except Thing 3 who is carrying his own ball in his hands. ?Why would he do that? ?Well, he didn’t like the part about sharing and taking turns with the ball. ?And he got really, really mad when one of the defenders kicked his ball. ?So he decided to hold onto his ball just in case someone else tried to kick it.

After storming off the field and threatening to walk to the playground, he decided he would conform to these perceived arbitrary rules and join the game. ?Except in true Thing 3 fashion, he would rather?sabotage it for everyone else if he can’t do it his way. ?So?he set out to be the one who gets the ball. ?I have to say he was quite good when he set his mind to it. ?A result no doubt from having two older brothers. ?He would steamroll through the other kids and fight his way to the ball, and came out from the pack to break away with the ball on several occasions. ?Except his purpose was not to get the ball in the goal. ?Instead, he kicked the ball as far out of bounds as possible to stop the game so the other kids wouldn’t be able to play. ?All because he couldn’t play with his own ball.

I’m glad I have this blog so we can look back here in 10 years, when he is a star soccer player, to see how he got his start. ?I’m not getting discouraged by this first experience. ?I just found Thing 1’s first time playing organized sports which also did not go so well, but now he can’t get enough team sports.

A New Bed

Thing 3 got a new bed today.? It’s a full-size bed with a trundle underneath for future sleepovers.? He had been in a toddler bed for so long, although it’s not like he was actually sleeping in it.

We made mention of it a couple of times but didn’t make a big deal.? This is Thing 3 after all.? You give him casual notice of change, but do not dwell on it because he will resist the more you talk about it.? When I picked him up at preschool today I told him there was a surprise in his bedroom.? He was excited.

He didn’t get upset when he saw it.? I think he was actually liking it.? At bedtime, he was reluctant, but I lured him with the promise of a special bedtime story.? To my shock he got in the bed.? Under the covers.? And put his head on the pillow!? Those may sound like no big deal, but did you read this?

Here he is all tucked in.

Adorable, right?? Except it lasted about 10 minutes.? Then he was out of bed as usual, complaining that his bed was “unsafe” and demanding that I “put it back the way it was!”? The last I saw he was lying horizontal across the bed, on top of the covers, with his feet on the wall.? We’ll see where he actually falls asleep tonight.

A New School Year

It was a clear, post-hurricane Irene morning for the first day of school today. Thing 2 started first grade, riding the bus for the first time, and Thing 1 is an old pro now in second grade.

SuburbanMommy made them endure the yearly ritual of hair combing, collared shirts, and lots of pictures.? One day they will thank her.

Thing 3 and Thing 4 eagerly watched their brothers from the front door.?? Thing 3 started pre-K today.? New teachers, new friends, but he adjusted? well and enjoyed playing with all the dinosaurs in his new classroom.

Thing 4 was feeling a little left out, but she felt better once she found a backpack so she could be like one of the boys.

Happy Six Years Old

Happy 6th birthday to Thing 2 today! The time really does fly.

Twice In One Week

This is starting to get a little creepy. First we had a surprisingly good visit to the dentist on Wednesday. And then today, a similar experience with Thing 3’s haircut.

Anything Is Possible

There are some things I didn’t think were possible. I never thought we’d get as much snow in DC as we did last winter. I didn’t think the Redskins could get any worse, but they manage to do it every year, much to my enjoyment.

And, I never thought Thing 3 would be potty trained. But now he is! It’s something we’ve been working on for upwards of a year. It was going so poorly at one point we abandoned potty training completely, hoping he’d eventually come around. He was the only one left in his preschool class in pull-ups. Just getting him to give up diapers for pull-ups was an enormous struggle that took months.

Last week we went to Target and Thing 3 picked out the underwear he wanted. They were two sizes too big, but I didn’t care. He can wear a bra and panties for all I care as long as he doesn’t pee and poop in them. When we got home, we put all his pull-ups in a trash bag and threw them in the garbage. That was about 10 days ago. He cried for the pull-ups for a couple days but I told him they are all gone, he has to wear underwear now. We’ve had some accidents but for the most part he’s been peeing in the potty, especially at school. Pooping was where Thing 3 made his final stand, but I’m happy to report that tonight we had our first “splash down”.

We’ve been offering Thing 3 as many desserts as he wants for the last year if he’ll just use the potty. Tonight, we happily made good on the promise.
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