The last year has been much easier than the one before. Sure, a toddler can try your patience, but he can also communicate, which means there’s some give and take. As a parent, it’s easier to solve a problem when your child can actually tell you what’s wrong. Finn is turning into a real little person with a distinct personality. And it happens to be a personality I fully adore. With frequency, he astonishes me with his thoughtfulness, playfulness, and logic skills.
Reflections
- Kids aren’t usually best in class in all things. When he was around 2.5, a few friends commented on Finn’s verbal skills and just how communicative he was. I didn’t really notice that he was on the advanced side because he started speaking a bit on the late end and our pediatrician had even suggested speaking with a specialist at his 18 month appointment. Once they pointed it out, I realized he may have been late to the party but then he reallyyyy got going and, in truth, was beyond some of his peers. But while he may have been doing great verbally, his gross motor skills were behind. Balancing and climbing was tough, he couldn’t jump, and kicking/throwing was not stellar. Those same kids that Finn outpaced verbally were leaps and bounds (literally) ahead of him in the gross motor area. He has since caught up, but basically, I think most kids can only grow in one area at a time and those areas may vary kid-to-kid. But they all catch up in the end so just let them do it all in their own time.
- He’s a lover not a fighter. He’s generally just a happy kid who really wants to be around his “peeps.”
- He has best friends. It’s clear he gets along better with some kids than others and that’s ok. In fact, it’s great because it shows me he’s finding himself and what he likes.
- Kids tend to level up. Finn’s gross motor was lacking, but I realized he needed more practice. I attribute much of his verbal ability to the fact that we do so much reading in our household, but I wasn’t doing as much of the physical stuff with him. After going to the playground regularly and taking the stairs in our building more often, I started seeing an improvement. I think sometimes kids need something to work toward. Other kids have older siblings they can “level up” to; for Finn we need to push physical activities that challenge him a bit.
- TV time is ok. We let Finn watch tv on weekends and on those Friday nights when we’re just totally beat, he can watch a whole movie. Yup, an hour and a half. I make sure we’re co-viewing with him, talking to him about what’s happening to help him develop his reasoning and conversation skills, and that he understands it is very much a weekend-evening-only thing. We still always read books as the last thing before bed and make sure the rest of every day is filled without screens. But guess what – we also hand him our phone at restaurants when our regular bag of tricks isn’t working. I would rather have a kid looking at a phone while waiting for the food than one who screams or runs around disrupting an entire restaurant. When it comes to restaurants, I’m sure parents get judged either way, so do whatever feels best for you and your family.
Stats
- Weight: 37 lbs, 6 oz (91st percentile)
- Height: 38.4 in/97.5 cm/3’2.4” (71st percentile)
- Shoe Size: 9
- Skills: potty training, jumping/climbing, imaginative play
Our Faves
- Fruit and Gogo: Currently, Finn is not a big fan of veggies but loves cheese. Fruit is still number one – he could eat pounds in a single sitting. He eats gogo (aka: yogurt) almost every morning and the other favorite foods have been pretty consistent (salmon, meatballs, pizza).
- Movies: Finn watches the same few movies on repeat. He loves music so his favorites are animated musicals like Encanto (yes, still), Coco, and Frozen. He also really likes Turning Red, which only has one song, but it’s a bop, and has had a moment with Cars and Kung Fu Panda.
- Swimming: Finn certainly isn’t afraid of the water and loves doing “jump dunks.”
- Books: We still read every single night, usually about six books. I could not be happier that he’s retained this hobby.
- Cars: He loves playing with Matchbox cars in bed, specifically the ones from the movie Cars
- Children’s Museum and Bookstores: His favorite excursions are to the Children’s Museum or a bookstore. He also never says no to the playground.
- Routine: Finn thrives with a routine and likes knowing what’s going on – and knowing that he has our approval. “Is that a good plan?” is a constant question in our house.
The Celebration
- The Theme: We didn’t go crazy because there just seemed to be no need. We did it on Friday after school at our local place, and I think parents were happy that we handled the witching hour for them and they didn’t need to plan a weekend afternoon around it. All he wanted was pizza and his friends, so that’s what we did. He did say he wanted a “Mei Mei party” so we included some Turning Red stuff, like the goodie bags and ears and tail for the birthday boy.
- The Invitations: I worked up a take on the turning red poster and texted it to friends/classmates.
- The Decor: Some balloons and a banner was the extent of it. Armonie (the restaurant) was already decorated for the holidays so it felt festive.
- The Entertainment: We intended to stream Turning Red on the tvs and use a karaoke mic to sing along to the song, but the kids were thrilled to just hang, eat, and dance to kids YouTube stuff we threw up on the tv so that’s what we did. Everyone went home full and happy.
- The Food: Pizza, fries, and cake. Finn said he wanted a vanilla cake with sprinkles and “make it colorful” so I added some writing and candles to a mini store-bought sheet cake and called it a day. We also got mini cupcakes that I topped with raspberries and sprinkles. I definitely didn’t stress about the cake since I knew my cheese loving kid wouldn’t eat more than a bite anyway (I was right).
- The Goody Bags: I found Turning Red goody bag stuffers and also included sticky hands and snacks.
- The Gift: This kid has a birthday immediately followed by Chanukah and Christmas, all of which are celebrated in our interfaith house. That means soooo many gifts. The biggie for his birthday was a Tonie Box, and it has proven to be quite the hit. Highly recommend as a big ticket gift for kids this age. And it also makes it very easy to tell grandparents what to get when they ask – it’s very easy to order a new tonie to add to the collection of stories.
Peaches to Apples 