Arlito Turned Three!

Matt asked me recently if Facebook had taken the place of my blog and I said no, but after sitting down to post about Arlo's birthday and realizing that it has been a month since my last post....maybe he is right! I guess look for me on facebook...or don't and help me reconnect with my blog. I really want to.

So my sweet middle son turned three on December 5! It really is amazing how fast they grow up. It seems like yesterday I was writing about his birth.
Arlo is such a darling boy...when he wants to be (which is most of the time)! We went through the potty training haze a few weeks ago and shortly before we made the plunge and just did away with the diapers, Arlo was a monster. I think it was a developmental "bump in the road". He was so disagreeable to everything and had tantrum after tantrum, but once he made major progress his behavior changed. I feel like I can safely write that he has officially learned!! It is really nice to only have one child in diapers...the first time for me since Arlo was born. He is very proud of himself and we are so proud of him.

His favorite thing to do right now is imaginary play with Sam and they will do it for hours! I am not kidding. I have been feeling like the luckiest mom lately with my two older boys entertaining themselves in an imaginary world all day and a baby who sits and watches it all happen happily. There are some days when I just can't believe it is true...then someone screams or gets hit with a light saber and I remember that I do have real kids!

Arlo will wear a red cape pretty much every day and sometimes that is all he wears! He and Sam are really loving anything Star Wars related. Matt and the boys along with Uncle Andy and Grandma watched the first two Star Wars movies during Thanksgiving break. They LOVED them!! I was a little dubious about the movies and the boys' ages, but they did fine and really have been "in another world" with their play since then.
I can't think of any better than watching them pretend they are in an imaginary place! Yesterday they were telling each other that they were best friends. It was so sweet.

Arlo wears a size 3T, but just barely! He weighs 35 pounds and I am not sure of his height. He still needs to have his 3 year check up which will likely be after Christmas.

Right now he has a sinus infection and is coughing all the time. He is on amoxicillan and a nasal spray. I was able to convince him to use the neti pot in the shower with me last night and he seems to be doing better today, though he is still pretty mellow and tired. Kind of a nice change for me, but I feel bad for him because I know he is not up to par.

Arlo really wants to go to school and because his birthday falls 4 days after the district cut off date, he'll be home for 2 more years before he can start the Spanish Immersion program Sam is in. We may look into something for him part-time next year, but it is very expensive. I have been trying to participate in other activities for him on a regular basis, but with Otis and Sam (or Arlo) getting sick every other day (it feels like), we haven't been able to maintain much of a regular routine aside from going to the YMCA 2-3 times a week. He does enjoy the tot-watch there and there are lots of other kids his age, but there is no organized play and sometimes the TV is on the entire 90 minutes I am working out. However, I know we'll figure something out eventually and most days he is happy to just be at home all day (as am I, when we can actually do that!)

Perhaps I am just biased, but Arlo is a very clever 3 year old. He will ask questions or make statements that astound me. For example, yesterday we were in Target and he said (a bit louder than I would have liked), "Mommy, I have a birthday because I came out of your vagina, right?"
Yeah, like I said, clever.
He is also extremely polite saying "thank you" after everything!

He's been climbing into our bed every early morning lately and he snuggles up right next to me and goes back to sleep. Some mornings I don't even notice that he has climbed in until we wake up for the day. I am really enjoying it as he has never really been a cuddler, like Sam. I am trying to absorb all I can while I can.

I was afraid after I had Otis that Arlo would get lost in the mix, but so far he is holding his own and I am so thankful. He is really becoming a big helper with Otis too and wants to feed him and get toys for him. I love my days with him when Sam is at school and the days when we are all together.