My amazing children (skip if you don't care for yet more baby stories :))
After weeks of suffering from sore, swollen gums, Julian got his two lower front teeth at once. Nobody takes me seriously when I tell them this, because they tend to not notice the tiny little incisors, until Julian takes their fingers into his mouth (he still loves to chew on things) and, instead of tough but round gums, they feel sharp little teeth...
He has developed a keen interest in the world and grabs for everything within reach. Or without reach. In the latter case, he is very impatient if he can't reach what he's trying to get, and complains loudly. He will also complain if evil grown-ups decide that whatever he's trying to grab isn't something Baby Julian needs to grab (breakable plates, knives, the TV remote control). He also loves to see food. He correctly identifies eatable stuff, even if he's never seen or tasted it before, and smacks his lips or starts to suck in his cheeks to signify "HUNGERRR!" Unfortunately, he's very bad at eating so far. He pretty much refuses "proper" baby food, so I'm offering him soft-cooked carrot sticks and the like instead, which he loves to chew on, but swallowing is as yet a hit-and-miss game. As often as not, the piece of carrot, apple, potato or whatnot will be pushed out of his mouth, in a state that doesn't invite a second attempt. He also lusts for things he can't have, like potato crisps or grapes, if he sees Felix or one of us eat them. It's sort of hard to distract him from it...
The first reduplicated sounds appear, though they're not yet his favourites. But there are some recurring ones: "ning-ning", "le-le" or "me-me" (all sounds of annoyance), and "ba-ba" (a friendly sound, and presumably going to turn into "mama" and "papa" soon).
He also sounds like Baby Vader because he caught one of the colds that Felix brought home from Kindergarten.
* * *
Felix has succesfully taught himself to read, and is beginning to teach himself English - spoken and written. *facepalms slightly*
He has made a friend in Kindergarten. To be fair, I actually think the friend has been making him, but at any rate he hugs her back, goes hand in hand with her, and plays with her. As it's a little girl, everybody keeps making "cute" remarks re: they're going to marry soon! Hahaha. Ha. I for my part am just glad that he has a friend in Kindergarten at all. He actually tends to be friendly towards younger children (including D., the little girl who has apparently adopted him as a sort of bodyguard), but he's rather indimidated by those who are the same age or a bit older. For the record, he's comfortable with "much" older kids, i.e. school age kids. Pediatrist and Kindergarten teachers keep harping on about how he should be interested in same-age kids and we need to watch it, but if I'm honest, in Felix' place I'd be intimidated by those boisterous, braggy boys, too. (Not even boisterous and braggy in a bad way. They're four-year-olds, after all! But it's not behaviour that Felix feels comfortable with, and their interests don't well match his, either. He doesn't yet watch LEGO Star Wars, and he doesn't want to be a policeman or firefighter yet, either.) So he just doesn't know how to deal with them, and tries not to. He's fine with younger kids, to whom he likes to show things, or older kids, from whom he tries to pick up things. So he's not inherently antisocial, dammit!
When Felix has accepted a rule, he'll stick to it 100%. This can even be a little ridiculous, like when in the morning, he can't get up and come down the stairs on his own. This is obviously residue from when he was too young to go down the stairs without supervision, but he's internalised it and boy, does he stick to it. Other moms tell stories about how their kids emptied their entire Advent calendar in one go, or how, at any rate, the contents of some doors would be mysteriously missing. Doesn't happen here. Felix internalised that Today is the 15th, so I take the treat with 15 on it, and nothing else; tomorrow I can have the treat with 16 on it. He keeps watch on his father's advent calendar, though, because Jörg sometimes forgets to empty it and you can't still have the treat for the 13th in it when it's already the 14th! --
It also has its downsides, though. In Kindergarten, they already marked him as "challenged in his gross motor skills" because he wouldn't jump down from benches or vaulting boxes: He'd stay there and weep until someone helped him down. - He's perfectly capable of jumping down benches. But his grandmother, terrified of injuries, had taught him not to jump down walls and things unless someone was giving him a hand. That was a rule and he was sticking to it, and he had to be explicitly told that It's OK To Jump before he gave it a try. They didn't tell him that; they just expected him to jump, because That's What Normal Children Do.
When Felix hasn't yet accepted a rule, he'll test it for all it's worth. I'm actually assuming that this is normal behaviour in three-year-olds, because aren't those also called the Terrible Threes? But his Kindergarten teachers regularly complain that he says "No" or "I won't" a lot. So? Don't they all do that? And what am I supposed to do about it? He does it at home, too. All we can do is repeat the rule until he has accepted it, or grown out of it. Isn't that just the way it works, always?
I'm a bit tired of translating between Kindergarten and Felix, in case you didn't guess. I suspect they're just a little overtaxed with a boy who's emotionally and biologically three years old, but intellectually five. (Psycho counsellor's assessment, not mine.) Well, so am I! And I manage it, too! And I'm not a trained educator, damn it!
I know that most parents who're told that they're children are "trouble" like to blame others, and I tried not to do it, but by now, I do tend to go They Just Don't Understand My Precious Pebble, too. At some point, it becomes self-defence.
At least he's consistently using the first person now. That helps him a lot because at least they know he's talking about himself now. Still doesn't make them understand that when he says "Please change my diapers", he wants a new diaper. IDK. I guess they don't expect someone who's so eloquent still to need diapers? (He occasionally uses the toilet at home, but only at home, and only for pee, and only when he feels like it. Still, it's a start.) He also uses the advice I've given him for situations that make him angry - intead of throwing a tantrum when somebody wants to help him with something he wants to do on his own, he now shouts "NOOOO!" and then politely adds, "Thank you, I can do that on my own." When somebody gets into his comfort zone, he'll shout "No! Please leave me alone!" But I can't anticipate everything.
Besides, now they complain that "He always says 'No'!" Well, it's better than hitting, I should think?
You just can't win.
EDIT:
Oh God, now he's trying to learn Italian, too.
Send help.