Happy Fourth Birthday!!!!!!

At Lincoln Park in Chicago over Labor Day weekend (AGB) - the Hawks were playing in Chicago that weekend, so we had to represent.

Who can believe that our little boys are four years old today? And they are not so little any more. We had a weigh in for their birthday and Gavin rings in at 39.2 lbs and 3ft 3.5 inches high; Brady at 37.8 lbs and 3ft 4.2 inches high ; and Aidan at 32.8 lbs and 3ft 2.6 inches high. We started off the birthday celebration by bringing cupcakes to school on Friday to share with their classmates. I think it went over well. :)

Brady with Ms. Jenna - he could barely hold still!

Gavin was the first student to sit down to wait for the cupcakes to be handed out. Eager, anyone?

How adorable is Aidan in his work shirt he chose just for the "birthday celebration at school" occasion?

The last time boys have to wait in line for the bathroom - preschool (Brady).

After nap that day, we headed to downtown to get dad after class and to attempt to see President Obama on the Pentacrest. After that we tried to avoid the Presidential motorcade (poorly) and headed to Des Moines to celebrate with the Des Moines family.

Brady and Aidan with Dad at Obama Rally on Pentacrest

Aidan and Mom at rally

Dad and Gavin at rally

We were so blessed to have the Carroll's, cousins Kathy Jo and Katie and Cousins Julie, Shelly and Jadyn over for a party, BBQ and CAKE! This year we made a train and the boys practically demolished it before we were even able to cut pieces for people. It was awesome.

Gavin camps out in the tree-perfect

Aidan wants in on the fun!

All three (AGB) were dancing around saying "it's a PAAAARRRTY! We're having a PAAARRRTY!"

The bday cake! I was so nervous about something happening to it I took this right after we finished that night. And had crazy dreams the boys were trying to get into it before the party!

Gavin and Grandma K have fun with hats

GBA - Happy Birthday! They were so patient to wait until all of the candles were lit!

They were so earnest about trying to get those candles out and trying not to get burned. It was pretty cute!

AND . . . digging in.

Umm, boys? There is supposed to be enough to share with all of the guests. Boys?

This morning we had an easy wake up and the boys got to open presents from others in the family who weren't able to be there for the party. They got mom and dad's gift (KILLER TRAINS THEY CAN DRIVE!!!) and we did some tree climbing, cuddling and all around enjoying our four year old boys.

Angry Birds RULE! (ABG)

I truly thought I was out of the picture . .boo. Well, we love our new jackets and cars Grandma and Grandpa V and Aunt Pam and Uncle Tony!

Who the boys are today:

Aidan was a Santa Rock Star

Aidan:

You are so even-keeled in your day to day adventures. You are sneaky and love playing tricks on people, you have creative ideas for hiding during hide and seek, you eat any thing and every thing it seems. You are concerned with justice and people treating one another well, though sometimes you "try out" being a little tougher and naughtier than you actually are. You love to sing and make up your own lyrics to your own tunes (who can forget "Garbage men who sing! I'm a garbage man who sings!" or "I love my reindeer, Santa loves his reindeer!"?) You have started asking to give us a hug and kiss, and are often telling me "I love daddy so much. I am going to hug and kiss him when I see him". You LOVE wearing work shirts, especially to school and you are often the first student to help cleaning up according to your teachers (and what we see at home). You are a FISH in water and are so excited to take swim lessons this fall you have told me you want to sleep underwater. You love being naked and singing silly songs about your body parts with your brothers - you can get them going like no one else! You are also missing our Doha friends fiercely these days. I know that moves are hard, and i'm sure you are getting sick of only playing with your brothers. I promise to work to reach out to other parents and have some play dates with other children soon. VERY soon. (It's just hard for me sometimes!) :) And of course keep in touch with our Doha friends as well.

Birthday Cupcakes are the BOMB! (Brady)

Brady:
You really do put things together I would NEVER expect for a child your age. You can tell when you have told a joke - a REAL joke and you like being able to make people laugh with you. You are Sensitive - Capital S Sensitive - and while you seek attention, you only want to be the center of it if it is something you have initiated. You enjoy setting the scene for how you want to play with people, often telling us what to say so that you can give the response you want to give. You are incredibly loving with everyone in our family - if anyone is hurt you are the first to offer to bring us something or give a hug and kiss (if you weren't the perpetrator, that is). When you do find yourself in a time out, I am always positively struck by how much you have thought about what just happened. While you still react physically at times, your need to understand your world is so great that you are already working out ways to change the situation for a different outcome. You remind me I need to hold my temper more. You have more questions than I will ever know to answer and I promise to try and answer them all. I really do promise. :) You love figuring out how to use your body for athletics - soccer, baseball/tee ball, jumping, etc. And you are GOOD at it. You also tell me often how much you love each person in our family. Several times recently you have asked Daddy or I if we would snuggle with you on the couch after dinner. Who can resist that?! While you miss our Doha friends, you seem content to know that we can talk to them whenever we want, we just have to plan for it. I hope to be able to foster close family friendships like we did in Doha for you and your brothers.

Gavin the "old man!" (that's a car in his mouth)

Gavin:
You are a powerhouse of emotion and strength wrapped into the most muscular body I have ever seen in a preschooler. You are quite particular these days about where you want to sit, when you want to go downstairs, who you want to play with you, what you want to play with or eat or not eat and you have become very good at EXPRESSING those emotions. You still love music and know the words to so many songs it is mind boggling for someone like myself who seems to have no musical abilities. Letters and numbers are your thing and it is only a matter of time before you are reading, I am certain of it. Your laugh is so belly-achingly delightful. You have become fascinated with climbing trees and got yourself a little does of it at Grandparents this weekend - I think you may be hooked! You LOVE the train set the Carroll's gave us. Capital L Love. You also ask now and again for me to hold you and carry you like a baby and you just like the closeness and snuggling. You are drawn to animals and they are drawn to you. When we see someone walking their dog, Aidan may be the first to yell "Hey, can i pet your dog?" but you are the first to say to the dog "Kiss me!" and get down at muzzle level for a big sloppy kiss. We went to the Des Moines zoo several weeks ago and they had an exhibit where one could feed budgies (little parakeets). Several people told us they were not going in to feed the birds, and I didn't get why until we went in and the birds SWARMED us. Like St. Mark's Basilica in Venice Pigeon Swarm. Brady and Aidan and myself were NOT cool with it (but i tried to put on a brave face!) but you just seemed so calm and taken with the birds as they landed two and three on your arm and hat and hand and the feeding stick. And you had no compunction about shaking them off when they got annoying to you. I can see your fascination and love of animals very clearly.

Daddy horsey rides are the best! (GAB)

A little fun at Lincoln Park Zoo - GAB (head covered)

Hey, that looks like fun - me too! (AB)

Gavin enjoyed their hot dogs. Very much.

Public Transportation is awesome! We love the CTA! (AGB)

As the boys grow older, I am starting to realize I'm not necessarily wanting another child, but that i want THEM again. I feel like so much of their baby and toddlerhood was lost in the day-to-day job of staying alive that I miss their squirmy adorable selves as they were eating from bottles and the middle of the night wake-ups and the baths and the first solid feedings and their first mobility milestones and early talking. In my less sleep deprived days I long to re-experience all of those stages again, but slowed down a half-turn or two.

Aidan - because this is who this child is. When no one is paying attention, he is wearing these glasses on the back of his head. Wonderful.

The other day after nap, Brady was the first one awake and Aidan and Gavin were still laying in bed waking up slowly. I had crawled in with Aidan after I snuggled Gavin and Brady gets up and says as he lays down on Aidan "Do you want me to snuggle you Aidan?" and Aidan nods yes, so Brady does for a few minutes. They begin to giggle and sort of paw at each other, their precious faces that perfect peachy cream color. Then Brady turns to Gavin's bed and says "Gavin, do you want me to snuggle you?" and Gavin nods yes, so Brady lays down on him as well. They too begin to giggle and tickle a little bit, but very low key. Just laughing and smiling at one another. My immediate thought was (after watching the Democratic Convention and all of the family shots of the Obama's) that I would KILL to have a family photographer who just followed us around and got shots of the times like these. The light just so, their faces so full of love and joy, the up close shots i can never seem to get without them noticing and then playing to the camera instead of doing what they were doing. I really do try and take mental shots of these moments and hope my squirrely brain will store these memories away so that it is easy to find them in the future.

Gavin did not want to take his new jacket off, even after he was sweaty (GBA)

Happy Fourth Birthday to three of the sweetest, most amazing children in my life. May we have many more to celebrate together!

First Week of Pre-School and Other Ruminations

So the boys began their first full week of preschool at Grant Wood, right up the street last week. i had been really concerned that going every day (but only for 2.5 hours) would be too much for them.  Curt and I both got to walk them to school the first day (and then I walked dad to his bus and went for a long run - hoorah!) which was really nice and the boys really didn't seem too upset about us going at all. There are 19 kids in their class and today Aidan told me he thought it was "too many kids" (though they had 18 in their class at Creative Child. Their teacher is Mrs. Jenna with Ms. Hobby and Ms. Danyay (sp?) as helpers.

Gotta get t hose shoes off for some picnicking! (BGA)

To try and make the weekend before school special, we did a nice picnic in the park once day for lunch and took them for their first Dairy Queen cones the night before school began. There was a family who showed up with their kids in PJs and the dad said they had let them do it once and the kids refused to come to DQ unless they wore PJs now. too funny. Hopefully the boys will remember some of those memories eating outside and just taking some time to enjoy each others' company before the madness of the year begins.

Family picnic, what could be better?!(ABG)

The school had a kickoff event where you could come and meet the teachers and see the classroom the week before school began for the kids. I think that was really good even though seeing all of the other children at the elementary school was WAY overwhelming for the boys. Anyway, the first thing they are supposed to do is wash hands, then put up their packs and then sign in. On the first day I was sort of like, "huh, they don't know how to write their names yet. Are kids this age SUPPOSED to be able to write their names???" There were some parents actively holding their kids pens to get it to look like their names, and at least one little girl whose mom was coaching her, but she knew how to do it on her own. Our just scribbled pretty much. I will say this, signing in has made Brady want to practice writing his name, which is good because none of the boys had shown much interest in practicing with writing letters prior to this.  The other thing about school is in the first half hour they provide breakfast. Now, since our kids have breakfast a full hour before we are supposed to have them at school, I figured they may or may not partake in this. Let's just say, Gavin has had two breakfasts every day for the entire school week)and every day since). :) It IS his favorite meal. Aidan and Brady have done some free-play during that time, but by day 3 they too are eating two breakfasts a day. Ridiculous.

While I was sad they would be gone every morning, I didn't tear up like i thought I would. Maybe it was a freedom I am recognizing is necessary since there is no Tess to expect 3 days a week. :) The two and a half hours flies by every morning, but it is always so fun to have lunch with them and all three of them have to physically restrain themselves from running to me when they see me come in the door. That's pretty awesome. 

They are able to choose activities/centers they would like to do by putting a little card with a monster picture (how appropriate :)) on it in the slot for each center. When the slots are full, they have to wait until there is space for them. Having lived as multiples, I think they are probably more used to this idea of taking turns than a lot of the other kids there and they are seeming to relish the routines. Brady doesn't seem to dislike school like he did last year at Creative Child, nor does Aidan. Gavin has said a few times he doesn't want to go to school, but he has yet to be clingy when I leave and he always talks about the things he did and the kids he played with with energy and happiness, so hopefully he's just saying he doesn't want to go because he just has so much fun being home with me. :)

They definitely have an ethnically diverse class with a few white kids and a few asian kids and predominantly black kids. They have just begun learning some of the names of the children in their class. Now I'm just trying to figure out how to connect with those other parents and have some opportunities for playdates for them to make some new friends. Since that is something that has ALWAYS been incredibly difficult for me, it is even harder when I worry "what if their kids are punks? what if the parent(s) are boring/crazy/absent/don't bother to stay? what if it goes so badly i never want to see the parent again, but my kids fall in love with those friends???" A situation fraught with danger for me. bleh.

Some funny stuff lately - Today I played hide-and-seek with the boys for nearly 45 minutes. At first they were only hiding all in the same place. Then, Brady decided he wanted to count and I would hide with the others. This meant Aidan and Gavin ONLY would hide where I was. The funniest part about it was the first time Brady counted, all three of us hid in the closet in the master bedroom. When Brady finally came to open the door (which Aidan and Gavin were whispering and giggling the whole time, he HAD to know we were in there) I kind of screamed when he opened the door and i SWEAR i think he nearly had a heart attack, it shocked him so much to find us in the dark. HILARIOUS. The cute things the boys were doing 1) Aidan kept having creative places he wanted to hide (the tub, closets, under covers, etc) but said I HAD to hide with him. 2) Brady kind of "got" that you aren't all supposed to hide together so when it was his turn to count, he would tell us all where to hide. But we never would. :) 3) Gavin just didn't want to be alone when we were hiding, and he was a VERY meticulous finder. Opening every door and creeping through every room.

Teeter-totter with dad - YES! (AGB)

I asked the boys the other day what were their favorite emotions to have. Gavin said his favorite was to be sad and gave me his textbook sad face. Brady then shouted "ANGRY!" and gave what has been his face about 50% of the time these days. When I said in a shocked voice "You LIKE to be sad and angry? Wow. I prefer to be happy or content." Aidan shouts "MOM, I LIKE TO BE HAPPY!" It was so cute. 

They had the Taste of Iowa City last week and we met Curt downtown. At one point, we went by a place with sushi (umm, AWESOME sushi/sashimi BTW) out and a HUGE pile of wasabi on the table. So I said to the boys, "DO NOT touch that. It is VERY spicy and you will NOT like it if you eat it or it gets in your eyes." The people at the table kind of laughed at the situation (i.e. three 3 year olds, and a feeding free-for-all with Wasabi within arms reach - bad combo) As I got the pieces of sushi i was going to try, Brady says "Mom, what emotions would I have if I touched that?" It was SO earnest and sweet and funny at the same time. I knew what he meant and this was one of those times when it is SO HARD to not laugh as an adult, but it's also your natural reaction. The boys also enjoyed getting to pick out what dessert they would have. Brady fell in love with the Whoopie Pies at the sushi place and Aidan and Gavin were happy to have REAL ice cream. There was also an irish band and irish dancers in the Ped Mall. Our three boys were TOTALLY trying to mimic the dancers which was AWESOME. They got lots of giggles from other audience members.

We have also started doing lots of bike rides after dinner. Since Curt and I got our bikes tuned up after 5 years in storage, we ride along the bike path with the boys. it is really fun, even though we have a host of reactions from the boys. Gavin likes to be first when we are riding. So much so, he will stop and CRY if a brother (or one of us) passes him. It is ridiculous. We keep telling him if he wants to be first he has to keep going, but he just wants them to stop and let him get ahead. Let's see where that gets him, huh? Aidan likes being at the back of the pack and going slowly. He and I have had several chilled out talks as we meander about a quarter mile behind his brothers. Brady just wants you to try and "get" him on the bike. All three are ROCKING their balance and seem to have fun with it. We still have a few crashes from time to time (like tonight when a bug flew in Brady's eye, or when Gavin was looking backwards the other night), but very few tears. 

What? Is there something on my face? (B)

Speaking of the DQ visit the night before school, the boys are about up to a grade C in "Eating Ice Cream Cones". Basically, at the State Fair it was an abject failure and Curt and I had to end up "helping" them eat most of their cones (i know, poor us), then by the night before school, even though it was cool enough out for us to all be chilly and the ice cream BARELY melting, they still managed to have much of it melt all the way down one side as Curt and I would coach them (and occasionally demonstrate) where they needed to lick to keep the ice cream for going all over their hands. This past weekend, they reached average (maybe above average, it was pretty hot out so the ice cream was melting much faster than before) at the FunCrest camp/ice cream/bait shop after our trip to the Coralville Reservoir.

Off to our first day of Preschool! (ABG)

After their first week of school, the boys have gotten into doing some art a little bit more. Aidan and Gavin were busy coloring and then cutting their masterpieces down in the basement while Brady took some time to "color" Thomas the Train on the web. I was back and forth between the two spots about 10 times when I am up with Brady and suddenly hear Aidan and Gavin gigging and racing up the stairs. I hear Aidan say "Mom, look how silly we look!" As they come in the room they are holding the scissors, but it still does not occur to me what they have done. Then I see the hunk of hair out of the front of Gavin's head, and the hair all over his shirt. I check out Aidan and in exactly the same spot, he too is missing a chunk of hair, with hair all over HIS shirt. The two are just beside themselves laughing their heads off. I didn't laugh (though I wanted to!), but I just said, "Boys, here is why you do not cut each other's hair: 1) you will get hair all over the house and that is not cool (i HAD just vacuumed that morning) and 2) You will look like a crazy person because your hair will be randomly different lengths. So please don't do this again." I really think they were hoping for a HUGE reaction, but I'm guessing we would have had a few more CostCutters moments if I had. The best part is a few days later Ms. Hobby says, "Gavin, did you get your hair cut?" (probably thinking I'm the crazy person who did that to him) and I say "He did, by his brother." Her eyes were like dinner plates as she realized what it was I was saying. :) Pretty funny.