After Anabelle

Boy Big is really getting big now; at three and a half there is absolutely no toddler left in him and he is most definitely now a pre-schooler! What a huge burst of change our little boy has had in six months; Alexander has moved into our new house, he has mastered using the toilet, he has started at his school nursery, made new friends and been on his first holiday in a different country.

We finally moved into our new house about six weeks after Alexander’s third birthday, just in time for Christmas. After months and months (six months, one week and two days to be exact) of being told his new house needed fixing and that his Daddy was fixing it, I think he was just as relieved to finally be moving in as we were.

Alexander seemed instantly at home and all of a sudden, after months and months of toileting up and downs, thinking he was never going to be toilet trained, he did it. We moved in here and toileting clicked, he seemingly just needed to be settled and at home; almost another six months later and I cannot remember our last accident they’re now so few and far between. In fact for all the stress I felt while Alexander was learning to use the toilet, these days I don’t give his toilet trips a second thought – he goes when he goes and he reliably tells me. I’m glad the nagging days are over and I bet he is too!  For now he still wears an overnight nappy, and he is starting to have dry mornings, but on the whole he isn’t ready for the dry at night stage and I’m in no rush to push pants for bedtime thing either.

If I thought the second half of being two was hard work I was in for a shock the first few months of turning three! Wow! Threenager threes are the things to look out for; they make terrible twos look non existent in comparison! Alexander was at his most challenging yet for those first few months after his birthday, many tears and meltdowns but it was also some of the biggest changes for him yet.

In the thick of it, it was exhausting, but now out the other side it is easier to rationalise the extreme tantrums we seemed to be dealing with!  We had moved for the second time in six months (having moved from our old house to my parents, and then finally to the new house) and he started nursery, he was clearly beyond shattered and getting used to new things, new people, new learning. He had gone from being at home/with family 6 out of 7 days to school mornings 5 days out of 7. He was so tired starting nursery school that for six weeks or so he started napping in the afternoon again – almost a year after originally dropping his naps!

And it all stopped as suddenly as it started. That isn’t to say he isn’t having meltdowns now, of course he is – being three and all that – the shouting ‘ITS NOT FAIR’ at me has started already and boy can Alexander be stroppy – but those constant not knowing what to do with himself teary angry tantrums are certainly not what they were around the new year! Once again he is easily manageable and can mostly be distracted or calmed and talked down from whatever has upset him. But for the most of the time he is cheeky and amazing and I’d love to bottle a piece of his three year old self forever; what a fabulous age this is!

My beautiful boy, you’ve grown up some more! Now you are three and a half; even more infact because your half birthday was already six weeks ago. What a little grown up boy you feel now, especially since you started nursery school. In those first few weeks you looked far too little to be wearing a little school uniform and being dropped at nursery each morning; but a term and a half later you seem older somehow. It must be everything you’re learning!

You settled into your new school so quickly, you were tired for sure, but despite my nerves for you on your first morning and taking up your ‘Rising 3’ place two terms early, you quickly showed us you were ready and you were going to be fine; infact every day you run into nursery, nearly always forgetting to give me a kiss goodbye and running off to hang your coat and bag up without a second glance! After a few weeks in school you started making real friends, including your best friend at the moment, a little girl called Emma; you two are really very cute together, you playing the gentleman, helping Emma hang her coat up in school, even though she is taller than you and can reach really; holding hands walking before or after school and just this half term week we met her and her Mummy to go to soft play - we spotted you and Emma giving each other cuddles at the bottom of the slides!

You’re already learning so many new things at school. You know all of your colours in Welsh now as well as a few Welsh phrases such as Diolch (Thankyou) and Da Iawn (Well Done).  You love playing on the Welsh app on the phone, having to listen to the colour name and then choose the right colour teddy or balloon – you think you are so clever understanding in two languages. You’re learning loads at home too; you know your left from your right now – which I think is pretty amazing at only three!

You’ve got such a way with words now, a right little chatterbox and totally a master negotiator! You’ve learnt to hold your own and use those ever expanding conversational skills to exercise your control young man; you can be quite the bossy boots these days. Along with those ‘Its not fair’ from you, our requests are also often met with ‘in 5 minutes’, ‘when the cooker/phone beeps’, ‘when you count to 10’ – but they’re behaviour strategies we’ve used with you, and its worked for you, so you’ve adopted this to your advantage too; so it is working both ways for us.

I hope I never forget your vocabulary cuteness of now. I never want to forget that you call the hoover a moover, the computer a puter, and my favourite; a picnic a pigpig. You’ve begun to recognise when things are very important to you, and make sure we know. Your sunglasses we bought recently for example; you told me to look after them because they are in your words ‘very special for you’. You are totally aware of your ownership of your things now and can be very protective of them as a result. But I love your world when so many things are so special to you.

You have had your first holiday to a different country now; a long car trip through the tunnel to France and we arrived in Disneyland. Your excitement and wonder at everything there was infectious.    You loved being allowed to sleep on the top bunk in our cowboy room. You loved the tea cup rides, the Buzz Lightyear ride, the castle. You loved Lightning McQueen’s ride and the car stunt show. You loved the cowboy show, the parades and the characters, and the FIREWORKS – you were totally blown away by the fireworks. Your face was a little picture of WOW and two months later you are still telling me all about the fireworks you saw at the castle in Disneyland. It was such an exciting special holiday and I already cannot wait to take you to Disney again one day. 

Your favourite kind of play these days involves lots of tiny small figurines, and small world role play. You had a Planes busy book for your birthday and since then you’ve added Jake Pirates, Frozen and Mickey Mouse busy books to your collection. You’ve now got a Tupperware box full of these little figurines that you take on adventures, along with all the little people and animals in your Duplo, and the Happyland playsets. It is wonderful watching you play, talking to each character and making up their stories, making different noises and voices for each one and hearing how they’re all interacting together.

Peppa Pig is still a TV favourite but Umizoomi, Bubble Guppies and Fireman Sam are top contenders too these days. Zac and you have perfected the crazy shake dance at the end of Umizoomi now, absolutely gorgeous and delightful to watch!

Your first nativity performance at church is one of my favourite memories these last six month. You were the youngest on stage and utterly adorable dressed as a little shepherd; but standing in place was not your forte, when after a while you decided this standing around business was not for you and started running rings around everyone else on the stage. Around and around in big circles going faster and faster - but you my boy were absolutely hilarious, the entire audience laughing with you and for a moment you completely stole the show. Mummy was crying with laughter and I couldn’t have been prouder, you made my day! Already looking forward to the next Nativity! 

Can you believe in another five months you will be FOUR?! It is incredible how quickly little babies become little boys. You’ve had such a big growing up time since you’ve been three and we’re so very proud of you, and constantly amazed by you, our precious rainbow boy.

You make our world so much brighter, every day.