Cupcakeapoloosa!
The builder, the boy & the backyard lab
Mothers at the Tulip Festival on Mother's Day
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Birthday photos
Let's get this party started
Cupcakeapoloosa!
The builder, the boy & the backyard lab
Mothers at the Tulip Festival on Mother's Day
Cupcakeapoloosa!
The builder, the boy & the backyard lab
Mothers at the Tulip Festival on Mother's Day
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Henry Hits the Big 0-5
Phew! Another birthday weekend survived. Henry is now officially 5, and the event was suitably feted with a visit from Grandma Eileen and Grandpa Bop Pop, a party, and many, many gifts, including Grandpa's hand-built playhouse (a.k.a "The Lab") for the back yard. Also, a birthday phone call from Henry's favorite paleontologist, who happens to be a personal friend of our neighbor, who arranged the call. Henry told him about the real fossils he received for his birthday and learned of Dr. Larsen's summer plans to excavate a baby t-rex skeleton he discovered last year. Exciting!
For me, five is an important birthday because age five is traditionally regarded as the dividing line between "small child" and "child." When you want to explain why your house is a horrible mess, you're always tired, and you spend most of your free time at community centers partaking in activities that require you to sit on the floor, you can say, "I have kid(s) under 5," and everyone understands that they'll have to touch base with you in a few years, because right now you're BUSY. But after age 5, life with your kid starts to change. Over the past 6 months or so I've already noticed how much less hands-on parenting (literally) we have to do with Henry now. Rather than wrestle him into his clothes, I can tell him to go get himself dressed, and he does it! A mere two years ago we were fighting a hellacious battle to get him out of diapers, but now he doesn't even want us in the bathroom when he's doing his business. He shuts the door and even washes his hands on his own. He can play outside with no more supervision than the occasional peek out the door. He goes to sleep on his own and stays asleep all night long. We still resort to feeding him (i.e. scooping up food for him and shovelling it in his mouth) some nights, but that's more a function of our impatience than any need on his part (I swear, if we didn't practically force-feed him, he'd take 2 hours to eat dinner. He is the slowest meal-eater in the history of meals. Dexter eats him under the table).
In short, parenting is becoming less about grunt work and more about developing and enjoying our relationship with this autonomous little individual whom we happen to have created. And Henry's a fun guy to hang out with. None of my friends are into time-travel, prehistoric animals, prehistoric animals from space, fossils, or games of tag that involve prehistoric animals from space that are also zombies. But that's what an hour with Henry is like. He's also very affectionate, a wonderful big brother to Dexter, and generally a great kid. So happy birthday, my boy. I can't wait to see what the next 5 years bring.
I'll post some birthday week photos tomorrow. I swear!
P.S. Have I mentioned that he can read really well now? I'm so far behind in my blogging. . .
For me, five is an important birthday because age five is traditionally regarded as the dividing line between "small child" and "child." When you want to explain why your house is a horrible mess, you're always tired, and you spend most of your free time at community centers partaking in activities that require you to sit on the floor, you can say, "I have kid(s) under 5," and everyone understands that they'll have to touch base with you in a few years, because right now you're BUSY. But after age 5, life with your kid starts to change. Over the past 6 months or so I've already noticed how much less hands-on parenting (literally) we have to do with Henry now. Rather than wrestle him into his clothes, I can tell him to go get himself dressed, and he does it! A mere two years ago we were fighting a hellacious battle to get him out of diapers, but now he doesn't even want us in the bathroom when he's doing his business. He shuts the door and even washes his hands on his own. He can play outside with no more supervision than the occasional peek out the door. He goes to sleep on his own and stays asleep all night long. We still resort to feeding him (i.e. scooping up food for him and shovelling it in his mouth) some nights, but that's more a function of our impatience than any need on his part (I swear, if we didn't practically force-feed him, he'd take 2 hours to eat dinner. He is the slowest meal-eater in the history of meals. Dexter eats him under the table).
In short, parenting is becoming less about grunt work and more about developing and enjoying our relationship with this autonomous little individual whom we happen to have created. And Henry's a fun guy to hang out with. None of my friends are into time-travel, prehistoric animals, prehistoric animals from space, fossils, or games of tag that involve prehistoric animals from space that are also zombies. But that's what an hour with Henry is like. He's also very affectionate, a wonderful big brother to Dexter, and generally a great kid. So happy birthday, my boy. I can't wait to see what the next 5 years bring.
I'll post some birthday week photos tomorrow. I swear!
P.S. Have I mentioned that he can read really well now? I'm so far behind in my blogging. . .
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