FOUR

 My big boy turned four last week!  He's been excited about his birthday and has been asking about it since Drew's birthday in September.  On Thursday when we woke up, I asked if he knew what today was.....and he said, "I don't know" (even though we had been talking about it all week).  I told him, "it's your birthday today."  A smile came across his face and he asked, "how did you know that?" 

He actually didn't have a stellar birthday this year- we told him that four-year-olds aren't allowed to throw fits anymore, but apparently he doesn't understand that yet.  The actual day of his birthday wasn't much fun for him.....and he didn't get to go out for dinner or open his presents from us like we were planning (I didn't want to reward his bad behavior by giving him presents to open!).  So we did it the next day instead, after he behaved a bit better. 

I've heard that age four is kind of the *magic* age where kids all of a sudden start behaving better, and I certainly hope this is the case with him!  I think he's definitely acting better (in general) than he was a year ago, but we still have plenty of episodes where we just have to send him to his room to calm down.  He's a feisty, strong-willed little boy, and I know that some of that will never disappear.

Some things about Grant at age four:

- He's totally into make-believe now.  Characters in hand (either Toy Story figures, or pirates, or knights), he'll walk around pretending they're talking to each other and fighting with each other, and creating dialog between them.  Sometimes I try to peek and watch what he's doing, but he gets a little embarrassed if he knows he's being watched.

- He uses the word "poopy" regularly to describe things (we're trying to break him of this).  Whenever "poopy" is thrown into a phrase, Drew copies him and they both laugh and laugh!  His potty language is rubbing off on Drew and they both think it's so silly!

- He's very fashion-conscious.....something I never would have expected from my four-year-old little boy.  He definitely has an idea of which clothes are cool and which aren't.  The problem is that a couple of his "cool" shirts are WAY too big for him, and shouldn't be worn in public.  So I just have to be firm with him and basically not give him a choice of what he can wear.  Yesterday he told me "Mommy, I like your shirt.  If I was a mommy, I would wear that shirt."  Then later he told me, "Mommy, I like your purse."  I guess I won't worry unless he's still doing this when he's fifteen!

- He and Drew are either great friends or worst enemies, depending on the minute.  Grant always says, "come on, Drew!" and they run off to play together.  And when they're in silly moods (like after baths), they are so much fun to watch.  But sometimes Grant likes to think that he's Drew's parent, and this can get frustrating.  If Drew misbehaves, Grant will say, "okay, I guess you're going to have to go to your room" or "okay, Drew, now you have to get a spankin."  And then Drew apparently believes that Grant has the authority to make these decisions, because he starts crying and says, "no! no!" 

 - He's very affectionate towards his baby sister, and protective of her.  He'll say, "I love having a baby sister," or "I love Molly.  I'm so glad I have a baby sister."  Today he told me, "when Molly's bigger and bigger like me, I'll let her wear my shirts." 

 He loves school, and always asks, "is it a school day?  Am I going to Ms. Tammy and Ms. Shelia's class?"  (On days I go to Bible study, he goes to a different class that he doesn't enjoy as much).  He apparently obeys really well....his teachers say that they love having him.  Thankfully he seems to save all of his fits for us!

 - Just about a month ago, he learned how to pump himself on his big boy swing (it's the swing behind Drew in the picture above).  He's so proud of himself.....and it's nice for me because now he can entertain himself when we go outside.

 - He'll wave and say hello to a stranger (without them saying anything first), but he's very shy around adults that he knows.  This is really hard for me because I'm afraid it makes people think we don't teach him any manners.  Almost any time one of my friends asks him a question, he'll just put his head down and stare at the floor.  I have to constantly prompt him to answer their questions.  I'm not sure what to do about this.  He knows how to be polite..... but just seems to forget when someone starts talking to him.