A tale of two kids

Ryan
My gorgeous little boy is almost 8. I can't even comprehend how fast he's growing right before my eyes.

Remember I wrote a post begging 2nd grade to be good to my son? Well, my plea to the universe worked and Ryan has had an outstanding year!

I can't tell you how relieved James and I are at the difference we've seen in Ryan this school year. He's reading every night for fun (something he's always treated as a chore before) and, he's reading more complicated chapter books.

While he's not quite at grade level with his reading, his teachers expect him to be there by the end of the school year - hoorah!

He's still great at Math and will tell you that's his favorite subject. Social Studies has been hit or miss. They did a unit on Egypt and he scored a 4  (exceeds expectations) but, didn't fare nearly as well with the China Unit where he scored a 2 (improvement needed).  Ah well, can't win them all.

Today he'll be standing up in front of his class giving a speech on George Washington Carver. He's pretty shy so this will be outside of his comfort zone but, we practiced so, I think he'll be okay.

The bad? He has a Doctorate in talking back; the kid has snark for days. But, we roll with the punches because it's normal behavior for his age. Not that we let him get away with it. At least twice a day he's warned to cut it with back talking. He usually takes heed with his first warning but, has had to spend alone time in his room on more than one occasion.

Even with that, I won't complain because he's genuinely a good kid and his teachers say he's very, very well behaved in school. His mind does wander but, that's the plight of a kid with ADHD. He has to be reminded to get back on track here and there.

But, as I said, his teachers say he's rarely a distraction (however, easily lead to being distracted) and, does what he's told without trouble. It's good to know he understands that back talking isn't ever appropriate at school. Time and place is something kids have to learn, too.

They have a dojo point system in his class which has an app I can check. Ryan has never, not once all year, gotten a negative or even neutral point.

This week he is "Star of the Week". He filled out a poster with information about himself and our family along with pictures that are displayed in the classroom. It asked him "what makes you a star" and his response was "I'm a good big brother". Truer words have never been spoken; Ryan gets top marks there.
As part of him being SotW, James will be going in on Friday to read a story to his classmates. His choice is The Book With No Pictures By B.J. Novak. If you don't know the book, go buy it now! Trust me on this.

As for sports, Ryan has decided to step away from baseball and is doing soccer instead this Spring.

Hannah
She's 2 years & 7 months and already a threenager.

She's been taking ballet since September and loooooves it. She's also asking to do soccer so, we'll sign her up in the Spring.

Potty training is great with one exception; she hates pooping in the potty. She has zero accidents when it comes to pee, so there's that, but, pooping is her Everest. She has done it several times but, it seems to freak her out for some reason.

She's waking up from afternoon naps dry which is wonderful but, overnight is another matter. However, she doesn't need to be told to use the potty, she knows when it's coming and takes herself.

I'll be so glad when we're done with diapers/pull-ups forever. I think by her 3rd birthday in July, we'll have bought our last box.

She's talking like a pro and we can understand at least 90% of what she says.

Though at home we call her the tiny terror, her teachers insist she's sweet, kind & polite, very funny and doesn't make trouble (I ask every single day just to be sure). She does lean towards bossiness, even at school but, they assure me it's not a problem. Some kids are just more "take charge" than others and that's our Hannah.

One of my favorite things about picking her up from school is one of her classmates (who she has been with since infancy) brings over a picture for her just before we leave, at least twice a week. He says it's for "my Hannah"*. My heart melts.

My in-laws will be visiting from England later this month and, no doubt, the kids will be spoiled by them as they always are. This is my favorite time of year because we only get to see them once a year and it's always a great time for the entire family.

My in-laws are gracious and exceedingly generous to our family. I couldn't hand pick better grandparents if I did world-wide search.

As for me, I'm still the luckiest mom (and wife) in the whole freaking world. Of course I take things for granted, like we all do but, when I sit back and look at the big picture... damn I have it good.

*I must remember to tell his mom about these pictures. She'll be the first to say he has a crush on Hannah but, I don't think she knows her Romeo is pumping out artwork to demonstrate his love for her. She'll get a kick out of that. She has two sons with a third on the way. Whoo-whee!