I can't believe that Sam turns 3 today -- how did that happen? It's hard to believe that 3 years ago I was in the hospital giving birth to a premature baby born 2 months early. I was wrought with fear about what kind of disabilities and challenges my child would have due to his premature arrival.
Those fears have long been forgotten and we are incredibly grateful that Sam has blossomed into a smart, sweet, funny, energetic, highly verbal, social butterfly.
I know I'm not exactly objective but Sam is extremely verbal and bright. By 2 years and 2 months, he could recognize all of the letters of the alphabet. By 2 years and 4 months, he knew all of his numbers. By 2 years and 6 months, he knew upper case and lower case letters.
He can count from 1-27 (although he sometimes skips numbers 16 or 21). He can count from 1-10 in Spanish. He knows how to spell his name and is beginning to learn to write the letters of the alphabet. He knows all of his shapes and can draw a perfect triangle, circle, heart, square, and rectangle. We spend a lot of time drawing with crayons and with chalk on the sidewalk.
He loves music and sings all day long. Some of his favorites right now include John Jacob, Old McDonald, Rain Rain Go Away, Wheels on Bus, Mary Had a Little Lamb, Twinkle twinkle.
His imagination is truly developing and it is amazing to watch. We frequently search our house for Swiper the Fox (from Dora) and play pretend games like "selling items in a store" or "chef in a restaurant.
Here are some pictures, videos, and reflections on Sam's life as he turns 3:
His boots are his favorite shoes and he asks to wear them all of the time - regardless of whether or not it is raining. He manages to find all puddles to jump in and loves throwing rocks into the water.
As seen in this picture, Sam is holding his precious "baby doll" in his arm. Baby doll came to our family in March 2011, when baby Noah was born. Sam calls his baby doll his own "baby noah." Baby doll comes everywhere with us. He puts baby doll down for a nap, baby doll has his own special blanket. Sam pushes baby doll in the doll stroller. He even breastfeeds babydoll and changes his diaper/clothes. Babydoll wears Sam's old premie clothes! Baby doll is a very important part of our house.
He loves wearing his backpack and pretending like he is going to school. We have a terrific creek by our house and we frequently walk there with the dog so the dog can go for a swim and Sam can throw rocks/sticks into the water -- one of his favorite activities. He doesn't understand why we won't let him go swimming (when it is 40 degrees).
Mr. Cool loves the beach and playing with the sand. He also enjoys dressing up like the adults, wearing my sunglasses and my dad's watch.
We have transitioned Sam from a crib to a toddler bed. He never tried to escape but he was becoming too big for the pack n play so we needed to adjust him to a toddler bed. The transition has been amazingly easy. He regularly says "i'm ready for naptime, i'm going to go upstairs and put myself down for a nap" -- and he does exactly that! If only potty training were this simple.
He is quite a social butterfly and has a lot of friends. We go to about 20-30 birthday parties/year! This was his first game of "pin the tail on the donkey"
He has learned to dress himself and regularly picks out his own outfits and puts on his clothes. This frequently results in some very odd outfits, shirts on backwards, and shoes (boots) on the wrong feet (as seen in this picture). But we like to encourage his independence.
He LOVES playing with cards and trucks - and making up games to play -- as seen here with Uncle D.
It is truly amazing to see him mimic our actions. Here he is dressed in his bathrobe and slippers drinking his coffee on Sunday morning -- just like daddy.
Cooking is one of his favorite activities. He has a chef's hat and loves to help in the kitchen. Sometimes his "help" is actually not so helpful but we try to make family meals together.
He loves to line things up in a row and get them in order. Not sure where he got this from since we're not exactly the most "orderly" of people!
Arts & Crafts projects are favorite activities
Sam is an amazing big brother (when he's not using Noah's head as a drum) and the boys play together beautifully, especially when they are happily digging in the sand.
Although Sam has a clean bill of health, we go to the doctor more often than we would like due to past respiratory challenges (and another hospitalization in August 2011 -- we were there during the east coast earthquake). Sam has become a terrific patient and likes to play doctor with buddy Quinn.
He has such joy in his life and gets excited by almost everything -- here he is overjoyed by the Valentine's Day card from Mimi & Pa.
Yes, they are pretty darn cute in matching new year's outfits from Mimi & Pa
Sam's mischevious side pops its lovely head from time to time -- like when he gets into mommy's makeup.
He has a sweet tooth, especially for chocolate -- so proud to teach him how to eat Oreos!
Both boys are quite musical and love singing, dancing, and making music.
Playdoh fun with Mimi building a helicopter
We spend a LOT of time outside when it is above 40 degrees - the boys are so funny on the playground and beginning to truly play together.
We read 5-10 books every day and the boys frequently enjoy reading books by themselves too. This is part of our nightly routine when we read books, sing our prayers, and each say something we are thankful for.
He LOVES his train table -- basically he loves anything with a wheel: car, truck, train, plane, bus, etc
Last year we installed a fabulous swingset and treehouse for the boys. We love having picnics and playing in the backyard - Sam calls it his "castle".
Mr Cool in his sunglasses, boots (even though it's not raining) and favorite wagon
(which is the wagon I used when I was a kid!).
We also love to sing songs and try to record videos as much as possible
Sam is very athletic and loves to swing at the gym
Sharing is a very hard concept, but the boys are teaching each other some important lessons about sharing
There is never a dull moment in our busy, crazy, fun, challenging, sweet, and hilarious life. Sam is a terrific little guy and we are so excited to see what it will be like having a 3 year old in our house. Happy birthday Sam!
No comments:
Post a Comment