The Little Dictator & Other Must Remembers...

So Mary Jeanne has a funny little habit. When she's relaxing, she likes to stick her right hand in her shirt (often and drink her milk) while surveying the room. Since she often is behaving like a dictator and the boys are her minion, we've taken to calling her Napoleon. She is finally starting to talk and her most frequent word are "sorry" (since she's usually hitting someone) "candy" because she has her mother's sweet tooth and "where daddy go?" because she is pretty much exclusively interested in James during the day.






















































So Finn was having a hard time going to bed last night (we went to visit aunt Helen and so no one had a nap during the day). He was having a hard time settling down and got himself so worked up that he was "deep breath crying" - the sort of crying that is interrupted by deep, sad breaths. As often happens when he gets like this, he started talking about how he only had one grandpa left, how he wanted to go see Grandpa Dan and then how much he missed Grandpa Tom. I told him that we'd go see Grandpa Dan soon and that if he wanted to talk to Grandpa Tom, all he had to do was close his eyes, think about Grandpa Tom and then tell him all about his day. I told him that since Grandpa Tom was in his heart, he'd be able to hear him and I knew he'd love to listen to Finn's stories about the Valentine's party. Finn looked as me as if he was very annoyed and said "He cannot hear me." I said that when I missed Grandpa I just closed my eyes and talked to him and that I was sure Grandpa could hear me. Finn sighed and said: "Mom, that's because you talk so loud." Umm. Maybe. Goodnight.

















Seamus has also had some real doozies lately too. He and his friend Jack have been fighting a little over the last week and Jack's mom and I haven't known quite what to make of it. Before bed, Seamus was telling me that Jack doesn't like girls and since Jack is his boss, he was no longer able to play with girls at school. I told him that Jack doesn't have a sister and so maybe he didn't know that girls are as much fun as boys and that we can play with whatever kids we have fun with no matter who they are. I thought that was the end of the conversation, until I picked the boys up after school this week and I mentioned to the teacher that we were having a little trouble in paradise. She started to laugh and told me that there is a little girl in their class who likes to sit in between Jack and Seamus and rub Seamus's back. The teachers have been laughing about it and saying they were going to have to keep a special eye on these three. We have lots of conversation about how to be a good friend, about how friendship doesn't always mean agreeing or liking the same things, but that good friends always say sorry and always forgive. By Thursday the boys were back to being best friends (even hugging and saying I love you when I dropped off Jack - very metro of them) and so I'm wondering how they've resolved this - I guess we'll see.

Seamus is also making us a little crazy because he's decided to use our parenting techniques back on James and I. For example, when we don't let him do something he wants, he often tells us that we cannot read him stories that night (if we still don't acquiesce, I've been told I don't get to read stories for as many as four nights). He also tells me that my behavior is disappointing him. That I'm breaking his heart (sometimes he actually clutches his heart under his shirt). That this is my last chance. Or that he's going to count to three. It only infuriates him when I don't listen to his punishments and I can see the wheels in his head moving (why does this work when she says it to me????) It's equally frustrating and satisfying because I often have no idea how to respond and yet I'm glad to hear that the things I say to him are sinking in.

He is literally growing out of his clothes at a breakneck rate and you can almost see his developmental changes as well. We witness lots of "I love yous" followed with random tear bursting emotional meltdown about how we are truly the meanest parents in the whole world (AND I MEAN IT). He is preparing us well for MJ's teenage years right now.

Again, as we were preparing for bed, he was mad at me and being mouthy. I told him that he was a lucky boy to have me, because, without me there was no him. (I realize this sounds stupid, it sounded stupid to me as I was saying it, but he's left me speechless quite a bit lately). He replied: " No, mom. I came from God (insert irritated, deep breath pause), you only HAPPENED to be there. Jeez."

In the photos, Seamus is showing off his new favorite shirt - specifically he wanted me to take a picture of his number 10. There you go.

Peace be with us all.