Brings Tears to My Eyes

My sweet Theo performing a song he wrote - both the words and the music.

First Piano Lesson

We told him learning piano will help for when he's big enough for guitar! He did great with Lisette.

The Butler Bulldogs

It's March Madness and that means family brackets. It's a fun tradition with the kids (and frankly me) picking their teams based on the name of the school. Well this year, Theo picked the Butler Bulldogs to win it all. And if you've ever lived with a four year old boy, you'll know why he picked Butler to win. Nathan confidently (and dare I say a bit smugly) thought he'd have the winningest bracket. But, we were all put in our place by the spirited boy who even had a Butler Bulldog dance to go along with his team wins.

Theo became a bit of a legend receiving texts, emails and calls from my family (no, he doesn't have his own cell phone or know how to check email, or read for that matter) after each win. Margie, his teacher at school, was beside herself after each win to discuss the game with him and she loved sharing his story with her friends.

He'd bound down the stairs in the morning to check the paper and squeal when his Bulldogs won. And he was so close to taking it all - though I'd say a Final Four try is pretty impressive.

The video is of him watching the end of the game and then dashing up the stairs to tell Grammie the news!

Giving Boy

Theo continues to amaze me with his generous and giving heart. At Bowen, they celebrated Las Posadas which ended in a pinata (something I remember from Christmas Eve parties growing up!). He came home with a bounty of treats and change. Completely unprompted, he divided up his loot into three piles and presented Maddie and Gabriel with their own goodies.

Dog Dog's Twin?

Theo's dear Dog Dog went missing a few months ago. No idea where that little dog is hiding. My best guess is that he got tossed in the recycling bin and without realizing it, he was sent off to the recycling plant. They were not helpful when I called asking about a little blue dog.

Theo was very macho about the loss of Dog Dog, or so I thought. Bowen has a showtime bag that the children bring home, fill with the theme and show and tell the next day. This theme was your favorite stuffed animal. As we were discussing who Theo should bring, his big brown eyes welled up with tears and he snuggled his face down into his elbow. Hello heartbreaking. He wanted Dog Dog to bring to school. I searched the Internet with little luck and then, thank you E-Bay, I found a ridiculously priced Dog Dog which I promptly purchased and OVERNIGHTED to our house. Welcome to the family Dog Dog's twin brother from California.
I suppose the concept of an unknown twin who's been out surfing in California might be a bit much for a four year old. Confusion resulted until Theo just decided that this dog is in fact Dog Dog (he knew it was not the original but still it became his own Dog Dog).
Meeting Dog Dog's twin brother or the reincarnation of Dog Dog or, you get the picture.

I believe this post may earn the title - Most Use of the Word Dog.

Our Soccer Star

Theo loves soccer. His team, The Wizards, is filled with buddies from school - Scotty, Sam, Caroline, Ian. But, Theo is the passionate player who runs up and down the field with a smile on his face. He's scored many goals and loves the attention!

We've noticed in the past few months his athletic coordination has come together and he loves to practice, from riding his two wheeler in countless circles around our driveway to playing catch with Nathan - he does it with focus and enthusiasm.

My Theo

Some funny Theoisms:

Theo, "Does God make the dirt?"

Me, "Well, God has his hands in everything."

Theo, "How many hands does he have?"

Theo, "Mama, I think we need to get some of that lotion that comes in the purple bottle and helps babies sleep. It's made by Johnsons."

Me, speechless and thinking to myself, where on earth has he heard this? The shows he watches are commercial free! Turns out on "on demand" they run a small ad before the show starts! Wow! This prompted a discussion about advertising and what companies are trying to do.

Bike Fiend

Theo is a cycling machine. He hopped on his two wheeler and took off like a dart. There is nothing he likes more than to go on bike rides. He'll even bike in circles on our driveway if he can't find someone to go with him! His balance and coordination is something else. Go Theo!

Theo on the Courts

The kids took tennis lessons this spring, Maddie with three of her friends and Theo with Bijan. He really loved it! The Windsor Club has clay courts which are great I learned. Theo looked forward to each lesson and showed such improvement at the end. The last lesson was held in the rain (and he chose his shoes, not exactly fit for tennis). Having the kids develop interest in the sport, even helped Nathan back onto the court, with a new racquet and shoes! I'd like to take lessons someday. Nathan said he could teach me but I think it might be better to have a neutral party help me out!

The Lego Boy

Theo loves putting together legos and will sit for hours - like three or four - working on a project. He has amazing focus and spatial skills. Nathan will sit next to him for support but Theo is in charge and able to put together intricate fire trucks, helicopters, etc. It's pretty fantastic. He was so excited to open many new sets for his birthday.

The Big 4

April 6th finally arrived. We had quite the build up to the big day - his friend party, Abbey's visit, Easter and then finally, he's four.

I parent helped at Bowen and we celebrated with his class.

That night we had a special Theo dinner, presents and cake. I love the look of concentration on his face.

Maddie was helpful and let him have the spotlight.

Nathan made up an invitation for a Theo/Daddy date - ride the train into Boston, go on a duck boat tour, have dinner and dessert in the North End and ride the train home. Theo was very excited. The date made a huge impact on him. He still references things he learned on the tour and talks about this special time with Daddy.

Happy Birthday Little Buddy!

Where does the time go? Theo is no longer a toddler but a full fledged preschooler and now 4! He seems so big. He is still our joyful boy, though watch out when he doesn't get enough sleep. He is so gentle and loving with Gabriel, listens and plays nicely with Maddie and loves nothing more than to give the biggest strongest hugs.

We were excited to celebrate him and his friend Sam at the Windsor Club with a special bear hunt party.

The invites

My friend Denise is a party planner extraordinaire. I was actually hesitant to plan a party with her as I was still feeling crummy and I knew how it could get out of control. No fear - it was fun and fairly easy to plan. We had personalized buckets with bear hats, bear pouches, bear food - goldfish, an animal mix CD with the cutest label on it, and personalized bear hunt t-shirts. (Now that I type it out it does seem a tad excessive - sigh.)

The piece de resistance was having Brian come to do creative movement. Theo LOVES Brian and looks forward to every Friday at Bowen when Brian comes to teach his class movement. Brian is young, fun, crazy yet stern. The kids listen and follow directions when he speaks. And one of his weekly activities is Going on a Bear Hunt hence our party theme.

Maddie was very excited to celebrate Theo. She made 25 origami bear hunt "purses" for the goodie bags, decorated with little scenes on the outside. Unfortunately, her spacey mama left them at home.

Attentively listening to Brian.

This is a game where one team knocks down the cones and the other team has to set them up.

Playing another favorite - messy backyard.

Theo and Sam

Going on a bear hunt!

Maddie and her friend Taraneh

Our bear hunt mountain cake

Back row: Max, Ency, Nathan, Ian, Scotty, Taraneh, Bijan, Davis

Front row: Natalie, friend of Sam, Sam, Theo, Maddie, Emma, Georgia, Caroline, Hilary

Hooray for Theo and Sam!

The Boys

I love watching them play together! They are starting to have such fun interacting. Theo is very patient as Gabriel learns how to play. I must admit, there's nothing I enjoy more than watching a boy plop down on his stomach and zoom a car or train around.

Bowen Sing A Long

Bowen ends the year with a classroom party and school wide sing a long. As soon as Theo brought home the invitation, he kept asking if Daddy would be at the party, over and over again. I tried to explain that Daddy has to work and can't leave in the middle of the day. He finally sighed and said, "Okaaay." Well, guess who surprised Theo?

As Daddy walks into the classroom

The boys or brothers as Theo calls them. He'll correct me when I tell someone I have two boys. "No Mama, there are three of us." Yes, there are little buddy, yes, there are.

Trader Joe's Bag Boy

Theo likes nothing more than to help unload groceries. This was the first time that he decided to accessorize with the bags!

Two Boys in a Boat

There's nothing like an empty box and some wrapping paper for fun!

Goodbye Paci!

Oh what a day! I always knew that Theo would decide when he was done with his pacifier, and that is what he did. Yesterday morning, he woke up and said, "I'm ready to say goodbye to paci." He handed them to me and I put them in a drawer in his dresser. He said, "No, mama, please throw them away." So I squirreled them into my armoire - just in case! And he did great! He slept the whole night and woke up very proud of himself much to my relief as he previously claimed that he would give them up when he was as big as Daddy! We had to have a goodbye paci party! What a strong boy he is.

How Could I Forget This?

Guess who's in a big boy bed? He's so proud and went quite easily sometime in September. And actually, it wasn't just going into a big boy bed, but switching rooms! I had set up his big boy room before Gabriel was born but he just wasn't ready to move out of the nursery. So I borrowed a crib and Gabriel slept in Theo's big boy room. Well, he finally decided he was ready and now he just loves his big boy room. He'll close the door to get dressed and is happy as can be. Naps aren't as great anymore but he will stay in his bed for quiet time - though makes for a rocky 5pm hour. He also transitioned to underwear at night! We are so proud and had an ice cream party to celebrate.

I Just Love This School

Let's just say Theo was beyond excited to start school at Bowen! We were really looking forward to being back at the school too.

As we walked up to the red doors, Theo says, "I just love this school."

We're so proud of him. We had no transition problems. He's been a role model in class: using his manners and not getting upset when other children won't share. He's really doing great!

Summer School

This summer, Libby, Rachel and I put together a little summer school program to help with the long days of summer, providing us with some structure and fun. It's been a great success! The first unit was on Colorado. The kids really enjoyed learning about the state. It was encouraging to see them point out the flag while on vacation and explain what each part of it meant.

Colorado's state animal is the big horn sheep.

We then moved onto a unit on history. We're still working through it but had a lot of fun learning about Native Americans, making teepees, igloos and headresses, trying to grind beans and grains for flour, making our own tortillas and doing a pow wow.

Maddie enjoyed copying some traditional Native American symbols onto her teepee and headress.