Finding the Good

Rory had his birthday last Saturday and he had a grand time. He truly understood his birthday this year. It  was incredibly evident when one of the first things he did was open up his beloved well-used Dr. Seuss collection book to a story called “Happy Birthday to you”. He had apparently only read that once before. He usually is all about the Lorax in particular but not on his birthday!

Then came all of the singing. So many Happy Birthday’s were sung. In fact, at his two small family parties (because #covid) once his cake was delivered to him by song and the candle was blown out, he put the candle back in and insisted we sing again. If you think a kid with limited verbal abilities can’t be bossy, think again. Every time he opened a present (which he wouldn’t even do at Christmas so that was awesome) he’d sing Happy Birthday to himself too. 

He’s having a hard time with the fact that it is actually not his birthday anymore. As if he gets any less attention on a regular day!

I’ve been in crisis about no longer having toddlers (how are my babies 5 and 7?!) and just feeling a bit stressed. Instead of focussing on all of the things that are making me panic today though (upcoming Kinderstart, scheduling meetings, assessments, trying to balance life and feeling like I’m dropping the ball on most things) I am going to focus on some nice things that have happened this week…aside from Mr. Birthday Boy.

On Monday Penny had a delayed opening with school because of furnace issues, so I was able to take her and my nephew for a drive. Normally when I drive with my kids, no one pays attention to me, so I’m usually singing (badly) in the front seat. But on this day, I’m singing like I usually do and Penny plugged her ears and yelled “stop!” not once, but twice. Then she looked at her cousin to see if he was laughing too. Love the connection between them…not a fan of the shade though.

Also, we drove up to Signal Hill and decided to get out of the car (which I would never have agreed to even last month). I had to kneel down to help zip up my nephew’s coat because of the wind and Penny didn’t even attempt to get away. The only time she tried to sneak back to the car she did it noticeably so that we could turn it into a game. I always wondered what she was like with her friends at school and I guess that’s it. I might need to get on those playdates I keep saying I should set up.

Rory has learned to reply to me with “I love you too!”. It’s only on occasion and usually prompted but it melts my heart every time. He’s, of course, the most stubborn and won’t let me get it on video though. I want to remember his sweet little voice when it goes up on “too!” forever. The littlest things make my heart melt.

We started using Melatonin with the kids this week. The kids have been progressively having a harder time falling asleep at bedtime for the past couple of years. Some nights wouldn’t be too bad and some nights it would be 2-4 hours of them wandering the room or, in Penny’s case, flipping her mattress and trying to get out her window. I keep joking that it feels like it’s legal chloroform but I can’t believe how well it has worked for them. I don’t know why I’ve tortured them and us by not using it before. Seriously a life changer. They wake up pleasant and well rested, and I get some downtime before bed so I am in a much more relaxed state when we get up in the mornings. The best thing ever. Highly recommend. Hoping it will work forever!

I think I talked about how we were having a hard time with Penny in about November and December but she seems to be out of that now. I think it was a mix of a growth spurt, regression, and needing a medication change. The only great things about regressions is that it’s like a slingshot effect for her, so she’s shot ahead in a lot of areas. She’s having an easier time at school, seems to be doing her work more, not lashing out at me anymore or running as much, and my favourite: deciding to hang out downstairs with Shamus, Rory and I more often. Well, until Rory starts screaming and then she nope’s right back up to the bedroom!

Writing this has made my anxiety go way down so I probably should start writing more. Trying to focus on the good always balances me out. Wish us luck in Kinderstart next month. I’m going to be an emotional mess – but, really, what else is new?