My Boy is 3 Years Old

Beester is turning 3.  He is quite the conversationalist, so there are times I forget he is just turning 3.  His understanding and reasoning becomes more complex every day. He can carry on a full conversation with any familiar adult and is very inquisitive.  When interested in a subject matter he will ask as many questions as he can think of and will spend hours talking about what you've told him and/or trying to act it out.  He is particularly interested in characters from books and shows/movies.

Some recent subject matters/characters he's been interested in:

• Planets
• Moon
• Dinosaurs
• Letters and Spelling
• Bugs from "It's Tough to Be A Bug" show at Animal Kingdom
• Monsters, as a result of some finger puppets he was given.  Now, he likes Where The Wild Things Are and the characters from Monster's Inc.

Some funny things he's said:

• He used to call the planet Uranus, "Myanus."
• Trail mix is "Cow Mix."
• Vaseline is "Gausaline."
• When he wants to know something he holds up his imaginary phone or a small calculator he carries and says, "I'll look it up on my slippery phone."
• He will begin working puzzles, then jump up and down yelling, "We're having a puzzle parade!!!!"
• He is constantly making up stories and begins with, "Once upon a time....."
• One day when discussing potty training he said in his whiniest voice, "But I'm attached to my diaper."

He has make believe "friends" that he builds (and names) out of Duplo blocks.  At times, he refers to them as his children and can be overheard disciplining them, telling them it's time for quiet time, getting them ready for lunch, or telling them the amount of time they spent in his belly.  When he disagrees with something we say, gets in trouble, or is disobedient he will often say his "friends" get to do whatever we aren't letting him do or whatever action has led to his discipline.

• Dragon Roar
• Parrot
• Gonzo
• Snooter

He's not super physical.  We keep trying to encourage him to climb, ride his tricycle, kick, throw, run, etc. and while he'll do it (minus the riding the tricycle) he prefers picking up sticks (that look like letters), gathering leaves, chasing squirrels/butterflies, building with blocks, working puzzles, and spelling words.

He is an observer and is extremely serious in new situations and around new people.  According to my in-laws this is how Sam was as a young boy.  He is very much a creature of habit enjoying a consistent routine.  He continues to be very cautious when climbing, playing on high playground equipment, etc. 

He struggles to listen and is known to talk over you (not a thing like his momma-insert eye roll).  He is also very loud (another momma trait).

He also loves to have all of the attention.  If someone is talking to me, if I am paying more attention to Zoe, or if I am doing housework you can bet B's behavior is going to go downhill fast.

He weighs 40 pounds and is 40 inches tall.  He wears 3T (and some 4T) clothes and size 9.5 or 10 shoes.  He isn't potty trained.  We started once, but it was rather stressful, so I decided to try again at a later time.

We found out last spring that he has a MBL (mannose binding lectin) deficiency which affects the immune system.  It basically means he is more prone to infections and has a harder time fighting them.  It is diagnosed (via blood tests) after he was sick for 2+ months last winter.  Each time he gets an infection he has to have a 14-20 day round of antibiotics.  A 10 day round DOES NOT kill the infection.  It is genetic, but we are unsure who it came from.  

He spends 1-1.5 hours in his room for quiet time each day.  He remains on his bed in his room during this time (for the most part).  We have had various seasons of struggle with quiet time, particularly after Zoe was born, but for the past few months he has been doing well.  He typically gets 2-3 items to play with during quiet time (stickers, flash cards, felt board, finger puppets, books, magnets, etc.) 

Favorite Toys:

• Duplo Blocks
• Letters (of all kind)
• Word World Blocks
• Stickers

Favorite Shows/Movies (throughout the year):

• Word World
• Super Why
• Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood
• Little Einsteins
• Special Agent Oso 
• Signing Times

Favorite Books (throughout the year):

• Any Richard Scarry book
• Pinnochio
• Any Franklin book
• 8 Spinning Planets
• There's An Alligator Under My Bed
• How Do Dinosaurs Say Good Night?
• How Do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon?
• Hermit The Crab
• Room For A Little One
• The Night You Were Born
• Elephant Joe, Brave Knight
• I Love You, Stinky Face
• Barnyard Dance
• The Gingerbread Man

Bennett has a lot of energy, loves to be engaged, and is often the life of the party (if in a familiar situation).  He has a sweet smile, loves to be silly, and thinks his daddy hangs the moon.  On Wednesday mornings he will tell me he doesn't want to learn about Jesus (because he doesn't want to leave for B.S.F.), but by the afternoon will be singing "God is good," telling me about the Bible story, and re-enacting the finger play.  He is so very intelligent, loves for us to tell him a story, and jumps up and down continuously when excited.  He is stubborn like his momma and emotional like her too :)