Here are some fun, random moments from early December:
Hinckley got his first hair cut this month! It was getting gross and matted in the back so we took matters into our own hands.
His cute personality continues to shine through. We don't love the way he throws food on the ground during meals but almost all of his other personality traits are adorable. He is always pulling his right shoe and/or sock off. I'm not sure if it's just because he's more flexible on that side or if it's because he's right handed.
He's started drawing on the chalkboard. He mimicks us so often and so well. He whispers when we whisper, he makes car noises with toy cars just like his Nana, tickles feet when we're tickling each other, he waves back pretty consistently (it's usually 30 seconds delayed or so). He started playing peekaboo with us this month- it's so cute how he peeks through his hands and doesn't always cover his eyes. He even occasionally "kisses" us back (he definitely kissed his grandparents goodbye when we left Utah.)
He loves wearing his baby shoes. He'll dig through our whole basket of shoes so he can find his shoes and he'll try to put them on his feet. Speaking of which, he is definitely mimicking us when we say, "Shoes," "Un, ooh, eee," (1-2-3) and "Baa" (Bath). Our favorite, of course, is listening to him call for Atticus. Now that we understand him (it sounds like "Addiss" or "Addy") we've come to realize that he is calling for his brother all the time!
Atticus turned four this month! We had quite a few of his friends come to his animal party. Even though he was scowling when we sang to him, I'm pretty sure he had a great time.
For the last couple of months he's been tying knots in anything conceivable (the tie for my bathrobe has been missing all month). It's nice to have him working quietly with his hands (he definitely has a gift for gab!) but some of the knots he comes up with can be quite...troublesome.
The most memorable part of this month has been Atticus's obsession with the Grinch. It started out as kind of cute and became downright awful. He can quote the entire story- and I mean the entire thing (he'll grab his book and follow people around quoting it). We made the mistake of letting him watch the Jim Carrey version and things just kept getting worse. He woke up one morning and told me, "When I grow up, I want to be the Grinch." He started "stealing Christmas" by wrapping Hinckley's toys and putting them on his pretend sleigh. Often he would ask why the Grinch rubbed onions on himself and even tried eating onions just so he could be more like the Grinch.
Then, mid-December, we had one of the worst days ever. Every time Atticus misbehaved and I got onto him, he would flash a ghoulish grin at me. He wouldn't apologize or seem the least bit repentant. I was completely bewildered. It wasn't until Dane came home that we discovered he had been trying to be like the Grinch all day. Augh!
The last straw was a day or two later. He knocked the Christmas tree over upstairs and started dragging it by its lights. Once again, he was trying to reenact a scene from the Grinch. After that, all the Grinch was officially banned in our house. We were still able to go visit the "Grinch" in a nearby neighborhood, but all versions of the movie and book were off limits. We're hoping that next year he'll understand what the story is really about.
In spite of these nasty moments (and days), he still has such sweet moments. For example, one day when his friend Bowman had a little fall off of a bike Atticus ran right inside and grabbed some frozen peas for his "owie." Bowman made it clear he did NOT want the ice pack. Instead of getting angry like he normally would, Atticus sat down next to his friend and started eating the frozen peas on the sidewalk. Bowman cheered right up and said, "I'm going to eat them with you!" And there they sat, eating frozen peas.
Atticusisms:
- "I think this (totally random) package is my cuckoo clock!"
- "Bobba, you shouldn't eat that treat!" ("Why not?") "It's not healthy- you won't get better!"
- "I'm a forgetter."
- "Please bless Mimi's ankle..." (even though we tried to explain it was her knee that was hurt...)
- "You be a good boy!" "You be a good grandpa!"
- "I want to be a a bad apple!"
- To Hinckley- "Don't listen to Daddy. He's wrong!"
- "Feel the beat in your body, Bowman!" (while "playing" the piano).
- "_______, I want you to come to church with me."
- "You look firsty. Let me get you some nice cold water." (While I was working out)
Our Christmas was wonderful. We drove up to Utah (we were on the road by 4:30 AM thanks to two kiddos I won't name) and stayed for a week. Five of my six siblings were there, which made it a lot of fun.
We also got to see both sides of Dane's family, as well.
Hinckley seemed to know it was Christmas and kept crawling upstairs. He even found his baby stocking. Atticus, on the other hand, slept in (for what felt the first time in his life!)
Atticus and Dane even got to try snow skiing!
There was a LOT of screaming. So much screaming. It was embarrassing. And I ended up dislocating my shoulder again in the process of helping my limp 4 year old down the slope (he played dead a LOT). But Dane's uncle came and saved the day. He helped both Dane and Atticus to have fun and so it looks like we'll be going more often... Hooray!
As much fun as we had for Christmas, I've decided that I really want to stay home for Christmas from now on. It was just too stressful. We were stretched too thin and it was hard on both boys (Hinckley really had a hard time sleeping and there were plenty of moments like the one below for Atticus).
I also felt like the first two weeks of December all I could think about was getting every present, goody and card ready before our trip. Thank heavens Atticus asked to watch a Bible video one morning instead of reading from the scriptures. He and I watched the Nativity story and the Easter story in one sitting and by the end I finally, truly felt the Christmas spirit.
As our beloved former prophet, President Gordon B. Hinckley, once put it, "There would be no Christmas if there were no Easter." I am so grateful for the gift of God's Only Begotten Son. I hope that in the coming year I can focus on Him more, especially when the Christmas season rolls around again.
