Month 51 - Recap

My sweet boy,
Just like your sister, I put you on a probiotic to help with your eczema (though yours isn't nearly as bad as hers is right now). I was expecting more drama from your sister at the thought of having to swallow a pill for the first time (she surprised me with a very low level of drama). I was expecting zero drama from you but also zero success (cuz you're four. I mean, are four-year-olds supposed to be able to swallow pills?). I was correct on the lack of drama but totally surprised at your ability to a swallow pill as long as it's safely tucked into a cup of applesauce. You only had one day where you went through almost the entire cup before you were able to swallow the pill, but still. You did it! Color me impressed.

Fun fact - you still pronounce Rs as Ws, but when you say "I'm sorry", it's not a straight "I'm sowwy". Instead you have Canadian accent. It's really cute, eh?

You have a go-to "I'm frustrated" phrase and it's adorable. Whenever Natalie is driving you bananas (it happens on the regular) or your Duplo creation falls over (it also happens on the regular - you're not a fan of creating sturdy bases) or life in general is just hard (pity party, table for one), you roll your eyes and flop on the couch and wail, "Oh for cwying out for Pete's sake!" I have a hard time being sympathetic while swallowing my belly laughs.

You still love everything about preschool. But on Tuesdays and Thursdays (AKA your non-preschool days) you have 0.0% interest in doing anything school related. In my mind, I had imagined that you'd like to do school stuff with us at table on the days you're home with us. I couldn't be more wrong, unless by "like to do school stuff" means "like to pretend to be Iron Man while yelling out random numbers while Natalie does her math". The differences between four-year-old Natalie and four-year-Charlie are too many to count so I keep having to remind myself that just because your sister was (is) a giant overachieving nerd, you don't have to be (yet) (or ever). You are uniquely you and to be honest, it does your sister some good to have you lighten her up. So keep it up, for cwying out for Pete's sake.

Hugs and smooches,
Mommy & Daddy

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Headlines for February 9, 2016:

• Trump Gives Victory Speech Following Projected New Hampshire Win
• Alabama Health Agency Confirms First Zika Case in State
• Clinton's Advantage Hits a Campaign Low; She Lags on Trust While Leading on Issues (POLL)
• UAE Picks Woman to Be First "Happiness" Minister
• Music publisher doesn't own 'Happy Birthday,' has to pay back $14 million

January 2016 - Recap

My little peach,
Your eczema has flared up recently and while I kept it at bay for a while using coconut oil and lavender, it got the point I needed to use Cortisone. I also decided to start giving you and Charlie (also an eczema sufferer) a probiotic to help your skin, too. I've given you both a probiotic before but it was in powder form. This new one is a pill and I was curious as to how you'd react to swallowing a pill. Per the instructions of the Mom Handbook (pg. 482, in case you were curious), I stirred the pill into a cup of applesauce and told you to swallow each bite without chewing. That first day you went through the whole cup of applesauce and still had the pill rolling around in your mouth. We gave up, you chewed it up, and we moved on with life. The next day we tried the applesauce again and it was a success. The day after that you only needed a sip of water to swallow the pill after you (dramatically - shock!) declared "Eating applesauce makes me feel like a BABY! I can swallow pills with just water from now on so PUH-LEASE don't make me eat that APPLEsauce again!" Point taken ... but whatever. Applesauce is awesome.

You were dancing around the living room to Pandora the other night and Daddy and I were sitting on the couch watching you. After your song ended, you gave a big dramatic bow and Daddy motioned for you to come sit in his lap. He held you tight, brushed the hair out of your face, smiled a big smile, and sweetly said "Babydoll, I could watch you dance forever." You looked up at Daddy, hugged him back, returned the smile ... and shouted "OKAY!" as you jumped up from his lap and proceeded to dance for the next 173 songs before we made you go to bed. Not quite what Daddy meant (or the response he had intended) when he said that he could watch you forever, but c'est la vie. Such is the life with a seven-year-old girl.

School has been going along really smoothly for the most part. I'm already thinking about August and what I'd like to do differently, so I often have to remind myself to reign it in and focus on the here and now. You still really like math but you still insist upon losing your ever-loving noodle when you get a problem wrong. I've had to say "Go run around outside for 10 minutes and then we'll try again" or "Go to your room and pitch an enormous fit for five minutes and then we'll try again" a lot this month. I can't say that it's a foolproof method for school success but it works for us. And I might just add "Angry P.E." as a subject on your report card this semester.

Hugs and smooches,
Mommy & Daddy

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Headlines for February 1, 2016:

• Iowa: The First Test is Now -- Cruz, Sanders hope to defy polls, upset Trump, Clinton in caucus
• New York vet gets Purple Heart 70 years after WWII battle
• Cindy Crawford announces plan to retire
• Zika Virus Update: 36 People in US Infected
• Malala Seeks to Raise $1.4B to Educate Syrian Refugees