Jay Update

- 3 1/2 years old

- Phrases: when he's done eating he says, "I'm all filled up". If he doesn't like a food he says, "that will make me sick, I don't want it." When he rinses his mouth out after brushing teeth he says, "I need this water for my back."  (we still don't understand this). "I'm going to my office, you want to come watch me work?" When we tell him it's time to stop playing he says, "just 4 more minutes". 

- He is so affectionate. He randomly says, "i love you mom" several times a day. Lately, he's been saying, "you are my favorite, mom." When Wes comes home he hugs all over him saying, "i love you dad...and i love mom and i love eli too!" It is so sweet.

- He also is quick to tell us about negative feelings too. When I fuss at him he says, "you hurt my feelings mom." Or "I'm mad at you!". This is good though, because it means we are now able to "talk out" our conflicts rather than full blown temper tantrums.

- He and Jake are best buds lately. I have been waiting for this since Jay was born. I love Jake, I do. But he stinks and sheds and that giant tail slaps you in the face without warning and I trip over him literally every night when I get up for something. So now, at Jay's request, Jake sleeps in his room. Jay feeds him and gives him water (with supervision), and he pets and hugs him whenever he's around. It's a win-win, for sure.

- He can write "J" (his favorite, of course), "E" but with 4 to 5 additional lines, "L", and "T"

- We told him we are taking him to Disney World in November. Now he asks about once a week, are we going to the "tamember" today?

- He loves opposites. He will ask something and then say, "yes or no", "now or later", "here or there", "fast or slow", "big or little", etc.

- He is always in motion, running, jumping, flipping, throwing, dancing...all over the house. He is sure the couches are mini trampolines, just for him. Yesterday I found him on the kitchen table swirling the light fixture around pretending that it was his helicopter (and, believe me, he knows better than to do that by now!). We have been watching the Olympics this week which has only encouraged the craziness...maybe that means he will be an Olympian one day....

- He loves "The Andy Griffith Show", after we watched a few marathons when Andy Griffith died. Now he asks to "please watch the old policeman movie?"

- He still puts on his fireman or soldier man suit daily. And throws in the cowboy outfit every few days. This has always been so annoying to me but I realized recently this is just his version of dress up. I know, isn't that obvious?? But, being a girly girl, I have only considered this to be fun when it includes full princess attire. If he was a girl I'd be thrilled to play dress up all day long. So I am trying to appreciate his "manly" version of this activity and get into it a little. (Imagine us running around the house each wearing our solider hats, trying to catch the bad guys.) Thrilling.

- He is really a great helper, especially now that Eli loves him. I can almost always count on him to "buy me time" when I am trying to get something finished but Eli is getting upset about something. He will sing him a little song, tickle him, play toys with him, etc. The other day Jay was napping and I had a few hours with Eli by myself. I was completely out of entertainment ideas about 30min in. I couldn't wait for Jay to wake up and help me.

- His temper and attitude have greatly improved in the last week or so. We still do the "happy jar" but he is behaving well even without the constant rewards. He really responds to me telling him how were are going to handle anger... "we aren't going to whine today", "if you are going to cry then go to your room", "we are not going to be mad any longer about this", etc.  He is starting to realize that he can decide how he feels and change them to be better.

- I am still struggling with choosing my battles versus being consistent about rules. Sometimes I say no and he easily responds with, "ok, mom." Other times it is WWIII and I fight with myself the whole time about whether the issue is really worth all the drama. Some days I give in way to easily...and have to deal with the repercussions as the day goes on as he gets bossier and brattier. Other days I hold my ground, even on the small requests that really don't matter, if only for the sake of consistency, and those days usually are much happier. The only problem is that it all starts back up the next morning. And that game just is exhausting, especially when Eli has decided that, he too, is going to be difficult that day.

Tomorrow we are going to Athens to watch Carrie graduate with her PhD from UGA!  It will be a fun celebration time. Then Jay is going back with Papa and Mama Ross to Tifton. Eli and I are going to visit Fran and Clara on Monday. I can't wait to hang out with them all week!  Gavin and Wes will be out of town for work so the timing was perfect. Both Eli and Clara have been irritable all week so I told Fran we will get them back in shape together!  :) 

Below are some pictures I found to compare all of us. As much as Jay looks like Wes, I think Eli is absolutely identical to him!  I have always seen a little bit of myself in Jay but, when I look at Wes' baby pictures, all I see is Eli!  See what you think...