Monday, April 8, 2013

My sweet boy

dear little r,

you have grown so much since I last wrote to you. it's amazing to watch you mature and become this sweet little boy. the last few months have been difficult, and i'm so proud of you for how well you are managing through it all. losing your papa was so hard for you, and for your mommy, and the emotional stress and all the unanticipated travel was a lot for us all. you often tell me that papa is in your heart and that he is playing there with rani and having fun. but you really miss him. it took a little while for you to find yourself again after papa died, but i'm happy to say you are on your way back and cute as ever. your finally sleeping better and laughing all the time. you are still three though, so you are incredibly good at keeping my life interesting :)

here are a few things you are up to lately. you love to talk. oh my goodness, do you love to talk. the good news is you are much easier to understand these days, well, mostly... and you are using your german so much more, which has been really fun. you have discovered the joys of role play, and i swear you can play in your room with your toys for hours and have a ball. the talking never stops, and daddy and i have a great time listening in on all the stories you are creating with your trains, cars, and legos. you also sing all the time. some songs we recognize, some are in german, and others we think you just make up.

you are mesmerized by so many tv shows, especially the ones where you can sing along or dance. i think your favorite though is watching daddy's car show with him (top gear), and of course, there is always nascar! you seem to finally be over the itch of watching the same show day after day though, and like mixing it up with something different during tv time in the afternoon.

lately your daddy has been sending mommy away for little breaks with her friends, so that he can have fun and play with you. you love this bonding time especially when daddy helps you build things out of your legos or draw big airplanes. in fact, daddy let mommy go away for a whole weekend with her girlfriends while you and daddy took care of things around the house. he even gave you a haircut, which apparently took thirty minutes and happened in three different rooms. you came out looking handsome as ever (and mommy promptly made sure to get you a professional haircut as soon as we had a chance - haha).

snuggle time with daddy!
don't you look handsome after your haircut?

your love of furry creatures only gets stronger by the day. you and lucy are now the best of friends. most of the day is spent watching you chase her around the house or carry her from room to room. you hold her tight and say, "i love lucy, mommy, she's so soft and cuddly." apparently she is mommy and little r's kitty - haha.

you love that lucy will now sit on your lap, too!
lucy is so soft and cuddly, mommy!

you also absolutely adore lando. he went from being a military working dog to quickly assuming his position as the protector of our family. he proudly walks you to and from school every day. he's not terribly sure he's supposed to listen to you yet though, but you never give up trying with the commands.

lando quickly gave up on this game, but you were all smiles anyways
walking lando has become one of your favorite things to do

you always say the cutest things... some of my favorites are when you say, "that's disgusting," or "stop it, mommy, you're driving me crazy," or how you answer when I ask you if you are ok with a very proper, "yes, i am!" i often tell you that i love you all the way to the moon, and last night you told me that you "love me all the way to the airport." i thought that was the cutest thing ever! if you fall or run into something you very quickly respond with, "i ok, mommy, no worry, i ok," and if you do something accidentally that you know was a bad thing you start pleading with apologies, "sorry, mommy! so sorry, i not do it again, mommy, i promise." And probably your favorite thing to say is, "after later," in response to just about anything i ask you to do. we're still learning about the concept of time, so everything occurred, "last night" or will happen tomorrow. mostly you are just a bundle of cuteness and i can't stop smiling at you all day long.

you've learned how to wash your own hair, and you pretty much get yourself dressed...well, most of the time. and you are the biggest helper. you help me make your snacks for school, we cook dinner together nearly every day, and you know how to operate most of the electronic equipment in the house (probably better than i do!). you ride your bike like a pro and you have physical strength that even amazes your gymnastics teacher. and you are now swimming like a fish! it's pretty incredible to watch how fearless you are in the water. the germans look at me like i'm letting you drown, and when they realize you are swimming all on your own, they applaud you. it is fun to see a little peanut swim so well. lately your favorite things to eat are fruit loops for breakfast, peanut butter and honey sandwiches, apple sauce, fish sticks, apples, bananas, and strawberries, and, of course, cheese. you are also pretty fond of schnitzel, and you absolutely love german pretzels.

i'm happy to report that you are finally out of diapers...well, you were... it's been a rough month, so we regressed a tiny bit, but i have faith that you will be back on track soon. i have to be honest with you, buddy, i think this whole potty training ordeal has probably been some of the most stressful parenting yet. we'll get through it though, i just know we will. daddy has promised you some awesome and fun things as incentives, so hopefully we'll make it.

daddy has promised you a model boat if you get rid of those diapers!

at this point you have completely given up on taking a nap and have for quite awhile now. although you fade quickly in the afternoon and can sometimes get a little cranky, you are so good about bedtime. you enjoy your bedtime routine including wearing mommy's robe and reading whatever happens to be your favorite book that day. you've memorized many of them, so i often have you read them to me, and that is so much fun. and then in the morning you like to come cuddle with mommy and daddy for a little bit before waking up for the day.

and finally, i think you are really getting excited for your baby brother to get here. you always tell me he is going to pop out of my belly button, and that he'll be really small but he'll get bigger, so not to worry. you are so understanding about how mommy isn't able to do as many things, especially carry you like i want to. but daddy really loves that he gets to carry and cuddle more with you now. but mostly you are just wondering when he will finally get here, and your eyes get so wide when i tell you that mommy's tummy is going to get bigger still.

dr. r is listening to the baby sleeping

i hope the new addition to our family is fun for you and doesn't confuse you or make you too jealous. you will always be my sweet little r and i will do everything i can to make sure you know that i love you more each and every day, even when your brother is finally here. your daddy and i are having such a wonderful time watching you become this amazing little and sweet little boy that has a huge heart.

we love you

xoxoxoxoxoxo

 

 

 

 

 

 

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