August!

How is it possible that August is almost over?  Time is going faster & faster these days!

Here's what Kasen has been up to:

He went from this full-head-of-hair boy to...

 Spiky haired rock star boy.  Honestly, I'm always sad to see his hair go, BUT, he didn't want it brushed, didn't want it dried, didn't want it washed, on & on & on.  It was very frustrating & his hair always looked awful 'cause he wouldn't let me do anything with it.  I begged & pleaded & he finally agreed to a haircut!

 He also worked on hi bike riding skills.  We'll concentrate on them a bit more when it's not 100+ degrees EVERY day.

 We had lunch with Ma & he got a magazine in his kid's meal.  Ma read it to him.  ♥

 He built this guy (Fire Lord) ALL. BY. HIMSELF.  He was so proud & he even managed to keep it together until daddy came back from out of town to see it.

 He played with the big kids & loved every minute of it, especially 'cause they play so much rougher than his friends.  He loves to play rough with the boys!

 He dressed up as BumbleMan (Bumble Bee + a Spiderman cape, and yes, I know Spiderman doesn't wear a cape).

 He even gave me a moment of preciousness for a cute photo.

 Followed by silliness, of course.

Tomorrow, Kasen starts his last year in the Parents' Day Out program.  Hard to believe he's in the oldest class now - and that he'll be in kindergarten next year!  :o  His class is much larger this year than it has been in the past, so if all the kids stick around, it could be a really fun year for him!

Celebrating FOUR Crazy Years - PART 4 (finally)

I think, so far, 4 is my favorite age with Kasen.  He's getting much better at listening, he knows numbers by counting & sight, he can even do simple addition & subtraction!  He's happy to play by himself (Bionicles/Legos, of course),  and he loves to play board games.  His imagination has grown so much!  He will sit & play (especially with his Bionicles) with figures & make up his own little story lines.  It is so much fun to listen to his little conversations/stories.  For as long as I can remember now, every night we've made his bedtime routine include us all reading a book together, then telling a story.  His stories are starting to have actual plots & it's great to hear his imagination at work.  He likes to watch Phineas & Ferb, Spongebob, Looney Tunes, Transformers, & Hero Factory.  Although at home he doesn't watch a ton of tv since he'd always rather play with his Legos/Bionicles.  He is starting to sleep better at night & now when he does wake up, he seems to be able to soothe himself.  On weekend mornings, he wakes up & usually goes straight downstairs to play with his Bionicles, letting Luke & I sleep in a little longer.  There's nothing better than being awoken by your child singing a happy little tune or having a pretend conversation with his Bionicles.  He is still having some trouble behaving a school & he is starting to despise naps (although I've started telling him he just has to have quiet time, he always ends up falling asleep).  He is definitely still a bundle of energy, and a total handful, but he is slowly starting to learn how to control himself.  Well, at least some of the time.  ;)

At his 4 year check up, Dr Pecson (who we just LOVE!) put my fears somewhat at ease when she said that she thinks his behavioral issues are a reflection of boredom.  He's smart.  He's bored.  He acts up.  sigh  He is 42" tall (88th percentile) & 42#s (85th percentile).  He is 100% healthy.  He passed all the developmental tests.  He refused to do the hearing test, but he did great on the vision test.  Dr Pecson had him draw a few pictures as a way of checking his development (I assume fine motor skills?), and when she drew a square she leaned over & told me not to worry because 4 year olds never really got it...  he did.  He spoke it out as he drew it - we draw a line here, then another line here...  Dr Pecson was impressed.  I was proud.  Then, she wrote the letter "K" & asked him what it was.  He answered "K".  She wrote an "a" & asked again.  He answered "a, K - a - s - e - n".  She then told us she was done & his check-up was over because he is healthy & smart & just fine.  He's a smart cookie, he gets it from his daddy.

Here's some of the pics from Kasen's 4 year photo shoot:

I LOVE this one: