Brace yourself for the mother of all updates.  And I’m sure I will still forget some really cool stuff!

Aidan just finished up his school year and will be on break from his preschool for the summer.  These last few months have been amazing for him and I am so glad we decided to go ahead and get him going on preschool.  Pretty much all of the 16 kids in his “3’s” class are coming back next year to do the “4’s” class together.  The moms have organized summer outings once a week with the kids so they don’t miss each other too terribly.  He has made some really good friends there and his social skills are booming!

The preschool  year finished up with some neat events including baby ducks hatching in the classroom (the 4’s class brings them on their overnight to Pioneer Farm and gives them to the farm…Aidan will get to do this next year).  The kids got to see the baby ducks swim each class day and they all got their turns holding the ducklings.

The kids also had a “Teddy Bear Picnic” on the last official day of class.  A few days later his class gathered at the Pea Patch at Mercer Community Center to plant their pumpkin starts.  In the fall they get to go up in October and pick the pumpkins they planted.  I LOVE the wonderful continuity these teachers bring to the children.  I couldn’t possibly have found a better place for my boy. 

We spent Memorial Day weekend with my brother and his family.  My brother’s kids are 12 (girl) and 9 (boy).  Aidan ADORES them and he always rises to the occasion around older kids.  I couldn’t believe all of the things Aidan learned to do over that weekend.  He built marble runs with cousin Gavin, played stomp rockets with cousin Morgan, learned to ride a scooter, took part in a water fight and got Daddy, and got his first bike!  This child is really coming into his own and figuring out how his body works.  It is nice to see him take chances and not be afraid to try new things.  It was a glorious weekend.  When I saw him riding his bike, I actually had tears come to my eyes. So many times I had really never dared to dream of this day.  A day when I wouldn’t be thinking of oxygen tanks, damaged lungs, and all of the other things that came with his prematurity.  I was just watching my little boy growing up before my eyes…racing a scooter down the street and fearlessly pedaling his very first bike.  It was almost surreal.  I basked in it.  It felt….good, right, and overdue.

The weather in Seattle has also been almost too good to be true.  We had a couple of 95 degree days last week and I have been taking full advantage.  I think Aidan and I have fallen just short of living outside the last few weeks.  We have gone on outings to the zoo, out to new parks, out to the Town Center fountains, to a new splash park, many neighborhood parks, and gotten him his first supersoaker.

His brain is growing every day too.  He is currently amazing me with how much his intellectual curiosity is ramping up.  He has started asking LOTS of questions.  Some examples recently range from “Mom, do you think it will rain today?”, “My favorite engine is Thomas, what is your favorite engine?”, “What does THAT sign say?”,  “Why is Daphne’s (our cat) tongue so much rougher than mine?”  It is amazing to see his mind start to function in different ways and start to show lots of curiosity about the world.

Oh…and thanks to Daddy, Aidan finally totally potty trained in the snap of a finger. They were out and about with underwear on and Aidan wanted a pull-up to do “#2″ in and they didn’t have one. So Aidan didn’t have much choice but to go on the potty. And once he did that, he was totally trained. He has also stayed dry overnight better than 90% of the time. Just goes to show you that with a lot of things, when your child is really ready then it will be easier to do it than when they aren’t.

I’m sure I’m forgetting a ton, but let’s just say life is GOOD. It’s better than good. It’s amazing and I swear I am the luckiest woman on the planet to get to be part of this wonderful life with my son and my husband. I am truly humbled and grateful.

To close out the post, what would summertime with a 3 year old be without his first real summer scrapes? (courtesy of the new bike)

It wasn’t pretty.  I lost so much fluid that by 4 a.m. I was crying and waking up my husband.  He came into the bathroom to check on me and I told him I had almost passed out.  Twice.  Off to the ER I went where I got Zofran, Dilaudid, and 3 bags of IV fluid.  Now that is dehydrated.  Felt very tired Monday.  Sort of ok most of Tuesday and then the second part of the illness hit.  Massive fluid loss again, leading to another ER visit this a.m. and another bag and a half of fluid. 

Gratefully I am on the mend.

In some lighter news, Aidan has taken a very keen interest in emotions lately.  Talking about what mood people are in, guessing what a character’s face in a book is expressing, and asking us to show him certain emotions.  He will ask, “Show me angry.  Show me excited.”  And so on and so on.  It is beyond cute.  He looks at us very intently and then makes his version of each face.

Brandon captured him doing this tonight and I had to post it.  I didn’t know that 3 year olds thought like this.  Very, very cool.

Aidan’s angry faces.

Aidan’s surprised face.

Aidan’s sad face.

And the best….his happy face. 

Recently when we were shopping in the grocery store, Aidan started wiggling and kicking his right leg.  He had been sitting in the cart a while as it was a major stock-up trip.  I asked him what was wrong and he looked like he was trying to find just the right words.  Then he replied, “Mama, I have bees buzzing in my shoe!”  It took me just a second to realize that his foot had fallen asleep and he was trying to describe the sensation to me.  I thought it was a very inventive description for a 3 year old. 

He has also started to think it is really funny to steal whatever spot Brandon and I have been laying in/sitting in.  When he first wakes up in the morning, he always trots right into our bedroom and wants a few minutes to snuggle with us before we all get up for breakfast.  If Brandon gets up to go the bathroom, Aidan excitedly moves over to Brandon’s spot in bed and gives me a cheesy grin.  Then he says, “I’m taking Daddy’s spot!  He’s gonna tell me to scoot my buns!”  So when Brandon returns he obliges and tells Aidan, “Scoot your buns!”  And Aidan giggles wildly.  Today he did this to me during lunch.  I left the table a couple of times to get things from the kitchen and each time I returned he had gotten out of the chair he had been sitting in and took whichever chair I had just vacated.

I came back and he was grinning from ear to ear and said, “I took your spot!” 

There are so many fun moments with a 3 year old.  I am truly a blessed woman.

Some recent cute moments caught on the camera.

Stuffing Daphne into a little canvas toybox with him.

Getting his own water….”I do it MYSELF mama!”

Making cupcakes with Daddy.