Dear Eliot: You are FIVE!

Dear Eliot,

I cannot believe I am actually typing this up as five years old just seems so big and grown up! There is such a big difference between four and five and five just SOUNDS so much older. 

You are currently very into legos, anything with an engine, puzzles, transformers, the hangman game, and your new favorite obsession is scavenger hunts.  Your favorite colors are red, orange, and black.  Your favorite foods are anything that they serve at a football stadium minus nachos.  Eating is an uphill battle but you are willing to try a bite of anything so there's that.

We love, love, love your imagination and storytelling and Daddy is thrilled that you are starting to get interested in magic tricks.  There is nothing cuter in this whole wide world than watching you make something or yourself disappear. 

You love learning and are constantly curious.  You are starting to sound words out and I'm sure you have done a lot more in school but the first word you pointed to, sounded out and got correct was FART.  School is such a great outlet for you and you strive to please your teachers and classmates.  You are gentle and sweet with others with a smidge of bossiness on the side. 

You love to be right and you LOVE to win.  Last year was a struggle with poor losing (and winning actually) but you are coming around are able to shake your opponent's hand and say "Good game".  Sorry and Candy Land can get pretty heated! Ha!

Eliot, we love your sweet spirit, your quick smile (those dimples!), your love of all things potty humor (maybe Daddy loves that trait of yours more), and your neverending curiosity.  Please don't lose any of these!!

xoxo
Mommy

Four Year Checkup

 

Eliot had his four year check up the other day and I just watched in amazement as he jabbered and did everything as he was told.  He did NOT STOP TALKING (I know y'all can't imagine that from my child.) and after showing his pediatrician his multiple band aids on his knees, the doctor asked him if his mom every wanted to put a band aid on his mouth. Ha!!

 

He got to do his first ear test since he was born and he aced it! They told him to choose a word or an action (like thumbs up or hand up) to let them know if he heard the beep.  He chose the word "frack".  He's very environmental and concerned with the fracking in Texas.  JAY-KAY! He loves to make up words and they typically start with the letter f so you can imagine how nervous that makes us, especially while going to the pediatrician, the grocery store, the bank line, etc, etc.  I think it even made the nurse nervous because she eventually asked him to raise his hand.

 

His eyesight is 20/20 and he is now vaccinated against polio and chicken pox.  Bless him, they have NO WHERE to really stick it so they have to pinch him first to have a place to prick him.  All in all giving my stick figure child shots is very tricky and awful, but the second you say sucker he dries it up and is ready to go! 

 

Since he's been to the doctor SO MUCH in his little life, going is like a fun activity to him.  He can catch up with the doc and all the nurses and always ends up saying hilarious things (see above).  Next we will venture to the dentist and he seems equally excited about that.  We shall see!

Dear Eliot: You are four. Stop.

Dear Eliot,

You are four now and it sounds exponentially older than three for some reason.  You like to remind us at all times (especially when we say you can't do something) that you are four.  As if that should change our minds and solve all problems.  "But I'm already four."  That is what you say. 

The best thing EVER to you is a task.  You like to feel needed and important and helpful.  This is perfect for me because you will put your dirty clothes in the washer, throw away your trash, put your dishes by the sink, brush your teeth, get dressed, and put on your shoes. 

You love to ask us for an activity or a project (your words) and it can be as simple as stacking dominoes or a little more complex such as a detailed craft.  This makes you busy and important and we love watching you as you tackle these things.

Numbers are your very best friend and you're proud to announce to anyone that will listen that you can count to 1,000 by hundreds and to 100 by tens.  The teacher has pulled us aside and told us you work extra hard and long on number activities and this is proof that genes can skip a generation.  By the time you reach fifth grade, you will have to call grandparents for math homework help.  Sorry, bud.  Feel free to come to us about anything regarding drama/music class or snack time and recess. We are your people when it comes to those daunting subjects.

Your curiosity is amazing and you soak up SO MUCH at this age.  You remember everything (sometimes not good for us) and once you have retained new information you love to share it with anyone who doesn't know it or will pretend they didn't know it. 

We are starting to see more of your personality and all of its sides which is super exciting.  Most of the time we can predict what you will like, not like, or do but we can never guess what you will say which is my favorite.  Thank goodness for our #eliotsays because we do not want to forget the gems that come out of your mouth.  Some surprising, some sweet, some brutally honest, some unintentionally hilarious and we love ALL OF THEM. 

You are observant, cautious, kind, well mannered, greedy (I mean you ARE four), curious, hilarious, thoughtful, smart, argumentative, competitive (you beat us all the time in candy land..HOW??), you wear your heart on your sleeve, creative, imaginative, sees things as black and white (this can be tricky sometimes) and just all around FUN. 

We whisper about you at night after you've gone to bed just so you know.  We talk about the things you said and did, the things we hope you learn from us, and sometimes we just talk about how much we love you and can't believe you are ours.  We are obviously crazy about you and can't wait to see what this year brings. 

Please quit reminding us that next you'll be FIVE.

Thanks,
Daddy and Mommy