Thing 3 | SuburbanDaddy

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.

Who’s Afraid Of A Little Thunder?

A major thunderstorm tonight with thunder, lightning, and hail. Right as we were putting everyone to bed which didn’t help any.? We usually do pretty well with thunderstorms. Except for one Thing.? Can you guess which one gets scared from thunderstorms?

Is it Thing 1, who breaks into tears and has crazy endurance for a 7 year old?

Or is it Thing 2, a master at deception who and is continually entertaining us?

Or maybe you think it’s Thing 3, with his bumble bee dreams and unique style?

What about Thing 4 who is full of determination and tries to do everything her big brothers do?

Put your guess in the comments.

How To Get Muscles

Me: Do you know how you get big, strong muscles?

Thing 3: No.

Me: You eat a lot of healthy foods.

Thing 3: Like Lunchables?

In case you don’t know what Lunchables are, go here.

Beach Trip Through Pictures

We’re back from our week in Corolla, NC. It was the first trip we’ve attempted as a family of six.? It was exhausting but a good experience.? For a look at one of our previous trips, see this post on why I call it a trip and not a vacation.

Thing 1 and Thing 2 were very excited to be at the beach.? Here they are bright and early our first morning, bathing suits on, showing off their booties.

Suburban Grandpa joined us for the first few days.? Here he is enjoying a game of Chutes and Ladders with Thing 3.? Note the glass of wine by his side.

Thing 3 normally walks around with little to no clothing.? But at the beach, it seemed to take on a whole new appeal for him.

With four kids, you don’t just get up and walk to the beach.?? There is at least an hour of preparation, packing, applying sunscreen, with many false starts due to forgotten items, and then, finally, lugging all the gear across the sand.

Keeping Thing 4 on her nap schedule was not easy.? We’ve learned over the years to take advantage of nap times whenever and where ever they may occur.

There was a lot of boy bonding and surprisingly little fighting.

We all climbed to the top of the Currituck Beach Lighthouse.? Well, all of us except Thing 4 who I carried to the top.? As if walking up 214 stairs in the brutal heat weren’t enough, try it with an extra 24 lbs in your arms.

Speaking of brutal heat, the temperature hit 110 on the deck of the pool one day.? The heat put a damper on some of our daytime activities, especially for Thing 3 and Thing 4.

At the the end of the day we took in the ocean breeze and a swing.

Thing 1 and Thing 2 played some mini-golf.

Probably the best part of the week for the kids was the daily ice cream.?? We relaxed our dessert rules and often had it before, instead of, or as a meal.

Unlike the way he sleeps at home, it was no trouble getting Thing 3 to sleep.? He even slept in a bed with a blanket.

We were lucky to have Suburban Babysitter and her boyfriend join us for a few days.? He was a very good sport and let Thing 1 and Thing 2 bury him in the sand.

The drive back home is always the worst part of any trip.? It took 7 hours to get there but almost 9 hours to get back home because of traffic.? The boys took it well with almost no whining or complaining.? But by the 8th hour Thing 4 wanted O-U-T and the last hour was filled with crying.

Dreams Are In There

Thing 3 has a new sleeping arrangement following a dream episode last week. He woke up screaming one night, terrified of bumble bees. He spent the remainder of that night in our bed. Which means we got even less sleep than normal with his squirming and kicking.

The next night the dreams came again, and this time he spent the remainder of the night on the floor in our room. At least we all could get a decent night sleep that way.

The next night, before bed, I had a long conversation with Thing 3 to try to ease his fears. I explained that dreams are not real, like watching TV. The way to stop a dream is to just wake up because then it’s gone. And I told him about the “magic” toys in his room that will protect him from dreams, something that worked well with Thing 2.

He wasn’t really buying it. Instead I got a barrage of questions as only Thing 3 can unleash. What are dreams? Where are they during the day? Why do dreams come when I sleep? Do you have dreams? How about animals?

The questioning went on like this for a good 10 minutes. Then he decided he couldn’t sleep in his room because dreams are hiding there, so he found a spot in the hallway just outside his doorway. He has been sleeping in this spot for a week now.

Happy Four Years Old

Today Thing 3 turns four years old!

People usually say on their kids birthday how they remember like it was yesterday when they were born, and they can’t believe how fast the time has gone. Well, for me, the last four years have been a blur but I wouldn’t say they have gone by fast. Thing 3 has certainly had many memorable moments.

Like the one in this picture. We were watching Thing 2’s t-ball game and Thing 3 needed to go potty. The week before, he needed to go at a little league game so I let him use nature’s bathroom and pee on a tree. At first he didn’t want to, but then it become the funniest thing ever.

So now when he needs to go and he’s outside, he just drops his drawers and finds a tree. Even if we are in a busy public area. Like the zoo. Or in a parking lot.

Happy Birthday Thing 3! You are a true original. Don’t ever conform to be like the masses.

Anatomically Correct Frosty

Take a look at this picture that Thing 3 drew over the winter. There is a hat, carrot nose, eyes, and mouth. All stuff you would expect to see. Then there are the arms and a bunch of legs. Except the line at the bottom is not a leg.

Anatomically Correct Frosty

We asked Thing 3 about his picture.

“What is this?”
Thing 3: “His hat”

“What are these?”
Thing 3: “His arms”

“And what is this?” (pointing to line at the bottom)
Thing 3: “That’s his penis”

“Frosty has a penis?”
Thing 3: “Yes, he’s a boy”

I guess I never thought about it.

A Terrible Quagedy

We experienced a terrible tragedy recently. Or should I say quagedy. A beloved friend of Thing 3 had a terrible accident and he was very upset as a result. Interestingly, the accident came at the hands, literally, of Thing 3 himself. In a scene reminiscent of Lennie Small from Of Mice and Men, Thing 3 accidentally ripped the head off his bath duck.

Duck With No Head

To his credit, I have never seen Thing 3 so genuinely apologetic for damage that he caused.

R.I.P. Mr Duck