Small Miracles

Miracle #1:

On Monday of last week, Owen fussed at the end of a bottle because he wanted more!! We had taken him off his reflux medication for the month of December because it didn't seem to be making any difference. We tried some more natural remedies, but nothing seemed to make much difference, and he was teething the whole month anyway, which always makes his eating terrible. After doing some reading, I decided to start him back up on the medicine because I figured that even if it didn't make him eat any better, maybe it would at least prevent damage (or further damage) to his esophagus. We started on a higher dose because he had grown since he got the prescription, and within 48 hours we started seeing improvement! It seemed to take a few days for him to realize that it doesn't hurt anymore and that he can eat more, and he has gotten progressively better. We are very thankful to God that Owen seems to be past the worst of the reflux! I have been very cautiously optimistic, but this seems to be real improvement!

Miracle #2

The other morning, I was feeding Owen his morning bottle (which involves me being in Owen's room with the door shut because he won't eat if there is anything more interesting to do...) and I could hear the big boys fighting in the other room. I was sitting there trying to decide how to approach this one, when the conversation took a pleasant turn...

Aidan: Gimme that guy back!
Gresham: No! I'm having it.
Aidan: No, actually you aren't. I had it.
Gresham: I'm having him! I want it!
Aidan: No, you're giving it back to me RIGHT NOW!
(insert toy-throwing noises and running across the house noises)
Gresham: NOOOOOO!
(bedroom door slams)
(bedroom door opens)
Aidan: I'm not playing with you ever again.
Gresham: Yes you are!
(now I can tell they are back in the living room)
(pause)
Aidan: Gresham, I was just thinking, "Which is more important, Gresham or this guy?" And I decided that Gresham is more important. You can play with the guy.
Gresham: Ok!

I came out and told Aidan that I was proud of him for making the right decision. Yes, Gresham should not have taken the toy, but no toy is worth responding sinfully over. Aidan said, "I felt really happy when I did the right thing!"

More Gresham Funnies

Every Wednesday, Aidan goes to a PE class for homeschoolers. Gresham has announced that "when I get 6, I'm going to go to PE to run with the big boys!"

Yesterday I asked Gresham where he is going to work when he grows up. He said, "At PE!" "What will you do at PE?" I asked. "I will learn people how to run the right way!"

Follow-up to Lego Negotiations, or better titled, "We're Dumb Parents"

So, after Aidan and Gresham studied the Lego catalog at length for days, Aidan finally made his order. He did some chores last Saturday and earned the last bit of money that he needed. He decided that he would rather buy the set with RC the car and Woody and Buzz than the set that he and Gresham had talked about in the video. Yeah, you can probably tell where this is going...

I knew that Gresham would be disappointed because this set would not come with the Zurg that Aidan had promised to give him, but Aidan had enough money already for the Woody set and needed another $10 for the set with Zurg in it. So we let him order that one. Gresham knew that he was not getting a Zurg and seemed fine with it.

The legos came on Wednesday. Gresham actually got the box from the front porch, but Aidan was at P.E., so we waited to open it. Aidan opened it when he got home and put it together. Then Gresham woke up from his nap. Then the fireworks began...

"But I *sob* wanted a Emperor Zurg!" (Gresham can't say "r's," so both of those words sound hilarious...)

"I want a turn with Buzz!! Aidan is not *sob* giving me a turn!"

I called Jordan, who was on his way home from work. He could hear Gresham (and Owen) screaming in the background, and I told him he could turn around and go back to work if he wanted to! Thankfully, he didn't take me up on that offer!

We decided that even though Gresham was responding the wrong way, we had probably set him up for this by letting Aidan go against what he had already promised Gresham. But God graciously provided, and in the mail we received some unexpected Christmas money, so Gresham and I headed out to Target to buy the Lego set with Zurg in it.

Well, Target was sold out of Buzz's Star Command sets. Gresham contained his disappointment, thankfully, and Jordan ordered the set online for him. He was happy with that.

The next morning, Gresham got up and was ready to go out to the front porch and retrieve his Zurg! We had sobbing all over again when he found out it would take a few days.

Hopefully on Monday, we'll have a nice shiny Lego set on our porch! And Gresham will probably lose interest in the Zurg after a couple of days, but it's okay... we felt like it was the right thing to do for him to not feel like he was treated unfairly... and Aidan knows that next time, he won't promise to give one of his brothers something and then not do it!

Brothers

I couldn't make this stuff up if I wanted to...

Thursday morning:

Mom: Okay, Gresham, let's go change your pull-up.
Gresham: Yes, I need a pull-up.
Mom: (Upon finding a naked 3 year old under his pajama pants) Oh! You're not wearing one!
Gresham: Nope
Mom: Did you put one on last night?
Gresham: Nope
Mom: Why not?
Gresham: I didn't wanna wear one.

He had dressed himself for bed while I was cleaning up from haircuts and Jordan was helping Aidan. He was dry all night, miraculously enough! I was very thankful for that! Then he put on underwear (at his choosing). After breakfast I asked him to go potty. He disobeyed by going and standing on the step stool and looking at himself in the mirror instead, and then went potty in his pants while doing that.

I'll have to start looking for coupons for Depends...

Thursday night:

Aidan: Dad, Gresham is throwing my army guys and I don't want him to!
Dad: Thanks for letting me know, tattletale...
Aidan: Well, it is the new sport!

Tattling the new sport? Where does he come up with this stuff?

Lego Negotiations

Today a new Lego catalog came! Aidan and Gresham spent the afternoon figuring out which Toy Story sets they want. It is rare that I can get a video of them without them being "on stage!"

Aidan got a $10 Lego gift card for Christmas, and is planning to save his allowance ($1 per week) to buy all the sets he wants. He was disheartened to find out that he will have to save for 50 weeks to get enough, and that 50 weeks from now will be almost Christmas next year... He only needs $7 to get to one of the sets, so that should be do-able.

What Gresham is saying...

Aidan and Gresham have been playing Buzz Lightyear all week, and I just noticed yesterday that Gresham has been screaming, "To infinity... hat beyont!"

Last night, I took Aidan and Gresham to Target with me. I told them that we could look to see if they have the new Toy Story lego sets yet. On the way in, I was giving them the usual toy lecture, with an added section about how we just had Christmas, they have tons of toys, etc, etc. and they are not to whine and cry when we don't buy anything. Gresham said very matter-of-factly, "I will see a toy that I like and ask for it, and Mom will say no. And I will definitely cry." He did, in fact, see a Nerf sword that he wanted, but he actually didn't cry when we put it back!

And then yesterday, Gresham came up to Aidan and said, "I have to tell you a secret!" He leaned over to Aidan's ear and then said in a normal volume, "What is in this box is Woody's hat! See?" And he opened the box and showed him.

It must be fun to be 3...