ABCs

For some reason, I can't upload videos to blogger any more unless I take them with my phone.  The quality isn't nearly as good as with the camera, but it'll do.  I'll post the other ones on facebook.  It's early spring in NJ with temperatures yesterday above 80 and today in the 70's.  We were enjoying the park when Aaron decided to do some impromptu singing.

Aaron has also become obsessed with swords and has a stick "collection" on our front porch that rivals any armory.  We reached a low last night when we found the citrus grater he'd been using as a sword was next to the toilet.  Today, although I swore I would never buy my child an actual sword or gun, we went and picked out a Nerf sword.  He loves it.  After we had picked that out, he asked if he could also get a toy.  When I pointed out that he had just gotten a sword, he replied, "That's a weapon, mom, NOT a toy!" 

In the great tradition of knights, sir Aaron was pulled in a red wagon while wearing his Lightning McQueen sunglasses.

Four years old!

New stats from the pediatrician today:

Height 39.5 inches (38 inches last year); 29%ile
Weight 35 lbs (32 lbs last year); 41%ile
Ability to stop crying after getting a vaccination: 10%ile

Still not as big as a brachiosaurus.

The first thing Aaron asked me the day after he turned four was, "Am I five yet?"  Sometimes it feels like he is four, sometimes like he is 14.  He is alternately adorable, inquisitive, funny, lovey, and petulant.  Luckily, he is the former much more often than the latter.  He has definite opinions about what he likes (Power Rangers, cars, dinosaurs, mac and cheese) and doesn't like (bedtime, Indian food, vegetables).  He definitely doesn't like Mondays.  I feel like I am raising Garfield.

He had a good four year old birthday- cupcakes at school and a small party with family friends, including Baba and uncle Jonathan.  I put "no gifts" on the party email, which was silly.  He doesn't need anything, it had just been Chanukah and Christmas, and I don't want people to feel obliged to bring a present, but a four year old expects presents on his birthday.  He was a little disappointed that only a few people went against my wishes.  He was over it by the next day, but it was a rookie mistake. 

Cupcakes for school

We had a great visit with uncle Jonathan, who was in the US for a month.  We saw him in Worcester and then he came to NJ.  There is a little bit of competition between Aaron and Jon as regards my mom's favor.  My mom mentioned that she was going to Africa in the spring.  Aaron asked why, and she said, "Because my boy will be there."  Aaron's response: "I'm moving to Africa?"

Aaron was moved into the Red Room at school.  The Red room is the pre-K room.  He was in the Purple room, but he was not being challenged enough.  We would not have moved him, but the teachers thought that he should be in the next "grade" up.  Fine with me, but he is a year younger than some of the kids in the Red room and it hasn't been an easy transition.  He can do the work (and the homework!), which is mostly practicing writing letters and some sight reading words.  He loved his friends in the purple room, though, and that's been a little hard.  We are not moving him to kindergarten a year earlier, so those friends will join him in the red room in September.  It's preschool.  I don't want to over think it.

Practicing the letter P

The most wonderful time of the year

Whether or not this is the most wonderful time of the year, I can attest to the fact that it is fun with Aaron.  He is at the perfect age for all this crap.  Mike and I are those parents who tell their son that Santa is pretend, but Aaron doesn't buy our lies for a single second.  We went to our town's tree lighting ceremony, at the end of which Santa makes an appearance on the roof of City Hall and climbs (precariously) down a firetruck ladder.  Whenever I say that Santa isn't real, he retorts, "You were there when he climbed down the ladder.  You saw him!"  It's probably good that he has a healthy amount of skepticism for things we tell him.  I am surprised at how uncomfortable I am with the Christmas stuff.  It's not like I'm soooo Jewish.  But Aaron knows about Chanukah and we'll light the menorah.  He goes to preschool now, so he pointed out that we do not light the kinara.  Does anyone celebrate Kwanzaa anymore?  It seems so '90s. 

We went to the home of one of my colleagues to decorate a gingerbread house yesterday.  It's a real production.  I went friday to help bake the pieces, which include melted lifesavers to make stained-glass windows.  By the end of the day yesterday, Aaron was covered in candy, frosting and "glue" (meringue fluff), as was his yellow car (see below)

In the beginning:

It's hard to tell, but on the right hand side, there are gummy dinosaurs attacking the house.  In front, of course, are cars, also attacking.

 

The "bumblebee car" gets an adornment.

 

 Painting cookies with a heavy hand.

 

The finished product.  No that's not the virgin Mary on top, that's Santa coming down the chimney.

Halloween!

 Halloween was a busy weekend in the Lovell house.  Mike & I had two parties and then trick-or-treating on monday.  Friday night, we went to a fundraiser for Aaron's school. We were told that all the parents come in costume, but we were among the 7%-ers who did.  At least we looked good.  It's hard to tell from this picture the level of detail of Mike's Captain Kirk jacket.  He became obsessed with finding the right pins and buttons.  He told everyone he was not Kirk, he was William Shatner. The fundraiser was pretty boring, but the big news is that I talked to a couple I didn't know.  And we had a great time talking.  And they wanted to get together so we exchanged phone numbers!  Take THAT, mommy-group-that-unfriended-me. 

Monday morning, was the Halloween parade at Little Learning Academy.  Aaron looked so cute in his puppy costume ("it is NOT a dog, it's a puppy").

A typical picture of 3-4 year olds:

Bath time

Bath time has become quite an event in our house and I just wanted to document it in pictures.  The last ones are with the 30 (thirty!) cars Aaron brings into the car every night.

Peter and Amanda's wedding

We just got back from Peter and Amanda's wedding in Spencer, MA, where Aaron played a pivotal role as one of the ring bearers.  Prior to the ceremony, he seemed to take the job very seriously.  We practiced at home and at my mom's prior to going and he knew it cold.  When we got to the location, he got all fancied up in his outfit, which matched cousin Reuben's (a fact that Aaron was thrilled about!).

The boys were completely unable to keep their shirts tucked in.  No one noticed (except my mom), because the kids were so cute walking down the aisle.  Reuben held the little ones' hands until Aaron broke free, hid the ring pillow behind his back, and sidled/sashayed down the aisle.

The kids also had a great time at the reception.  They ran around like crazies, laughed, ate candy and wore themselves out completely.  We were able to get a good "three kids on a couch" picture and some of them in action, thanks to cousin Andrew.

Aaron and mommy at dinner:

With Baba in the park the next day:

A pox on our house

Aaron has the chicken pox. He has had the first of the vaccines but some kids still get a mild form of it. He had what I thought were mosquito bites a few days ago that then developed into the classic vesicles on a red base yesterday morning. He is out of school all week so he doesn't give it to everyone else. Luckily, he is not febrile, has no belly pain and is acting like his normal self.

I took him to the park yesterday and he demonstrated some of his deft sword fighting skills.