Turning Four!

I would like to freeze Trey at this age and never let him grow any older. I love who he is right now, I love his questions and his curiosity, and I love his character.  I suppose it will only get better, but, at this moment, I would like him to stay exactly the same.

Trey amazes me, and this is a great summer to spend together to fully enjoy where he's at in his development.  I love his learning and sometimes he shocks me with the vocabulary and concepts he knows.  He has a great memory, so he is learning a lot of sign language and Spanish words at preschool.  He also seems to have an affinity to numbers, and it has been a lot of fun to push him a little with number identification and story problems.  He's often asking me, "Mommy, what does 20 and 20 plus to be?  what does 40 and 40 plus to be?  what does 80 and 80 plus to be?" saying "Wow!" as the numbers get higher and higher.  He has just learned to tell time on a digital clock, so I am hoping to use that to my advantage.  He also has some great early reading skills and loves listening to stories.  Right now he loves listening to superhero books (sigh) and Henry and Mudge books are still at the top of his request list.  I am exploring some other early chapter books but we haven't found any new hits.

I love Trey's demeanor and his character.  He is a pretty mellow guy, but he can also be really silly and loves to perform.  Give him a stage and his immediate reaction is, "Ladies and gentleman, the performance is about to begin!"  He loves to dance and Beastie Boys is still his favorite.  Recently, we were outside dancing to some Beatles songs and that was pretty cute.  Trey loves playing with his friends, both at school and at home, and he often talks about his buddies at school (Everett, Miles, Ryland, Torryn, and Jackson are his top five of the moment).  It has been fun to see him make his own friends and not just play with the kids at the playdates I take him to.

Most of all, I love how loving Trey is to me and Randy.  He is still a cuddler, and I dread the day when this ends.  I get lots of hugs and snuggles from my boy, and it fills my heart with love and joy.  We get a lot of affection from our boy, and we both cherish these moments.

Trey turned four on a Friday and we had his birthday party on a Saturday.  It was a fun filled two days topped off by a beach trip with Daddy and Bailey on Sunday.  Overall, it was a birthday weekend extravaganza, and my boy loved it!

Randy went to Thriftway before 6am to get Trey some birthday balloons.

Trey was so excited about them 

and just held them while he watched his morning show.   

I let Trey open one of his presents (okay, two) in the morning 

and he was excited to complete his Rescuebot collection.   

For brunch we went to Slappycakes with Nyree, Ashlyn, and Madi for do-it-yourself pancakes.  Trey and Ashlyn are birthday buddies, and it is fun to celebrate together.

Trey was wearing his Superman raincoat, of course, and was a little grumpy for pancakes.  Grandpa Doug even called him from Jordan to wish him happy birthday, but Trey wasn't very cooperative.

Ashlyn (11), Madi (almost 10), and Trey (4) 

Superman chasing the girls down the sidewalk 

After brunch, Trey and I met Randy at Pump It Up to do a little jumping.  We were really impressed when Trey climbed up to the top of this, and I would have been shocked if he had slid down on his own.

Nope, climbing back down the way he went up 

Trey had the most fun in this bounce house where he could just jump and jump.  He loved to jump to the wall, knock his head on the wall, and fall backward on to the floor.

When we got home, Trey and I made birthday cupcakes for his birthday dinner that night.  Trey's favorite part is licking the spatula when we are done.

We got Trey a globe for his birthday because he loves maps right now and talking about the names of places and asking where they are.  One day we were driving and out of nowhere Trey asked, "Mommy, where is Germany?"   Randy was able to show Trey where Grandpa Doug is working in Jordan this summer.

Aunt Julie, Uncle Tim, Grady, and Case came over for dinner and cupcakes.  I still can't believe my boy is four.

So many presents, and the hit of the evening was this box.  Trey and Grady could have played with this box for hours.  Guess who's inside?

Surprise!  

Saturday we did Trey's birthday party at Kris and John's house.  They have a great backyard which is great for the kids to run around.  Trey wanted a Disney party, so we had decorations from Mickey, Jake, Doc, and Woody. This was the first year where Trey invited his own friends rather than my friends who have kids, and it was definitely a transition to have a party with people I didn't even know.

Playing on the slip-n-slide 

Go fish!

Declan, I don't think this says much about your technique! 

(I guess you can't tell from this photo, but he's facing backwards.)

Randy acting as the fish 

Pin the nose on Mickey 

Pinata! 

Torryn, Vivi, Declan, Trey, and Miles 

Vivi helping open gifts 

Vivi and Marika 

Trey LOVES his superhero costumes from Aunt Julie.

I think he wore this for the next three days straight. 

Randy LOVES "his" new Legos from Torryn.

I'm not sure Trey had any part in the assembly of these trucks.

On Sunday we took Trey to the beach because he requested to "go to the beach with Daddy and Bailey and dig in the sand."  It was a beautiful day, albeit a little windy, and we had a great time.

Randy even let Bailey off leash, and Bailey did a great job of coming when we called and not running away (damn).

Happy family on the sand

It's been another full year in the Clark house.  You hear terrible things about the threes, and while we have had our ups and downs with Trey's behavior (oh the whining!), he mostly has honestly been a great kid who regulates himself well and redirects pretty easily when he's upset.  He's a silly boy with a great sense of humor, he's a good learner with a killer memory, and he's a sincere boy who seems to relate well to people.  I am so proud of who he has been as a three year old, and I can't wait to see what he's like as a four year old...even though I still wish I could freeze time.

Summer Livin'

The first week of summer always feels a little chaotic because I am trying to get grades posted at PSU and prepare for Trey's birthday party. This year was no different, especially because Randy was out of town for part of it.  Trey and I had a good first week together both relaxing and being productive.

I bought some strawberries and raspberries at the farmers market and made 20 jars of freezer jam!  This was critical because I was all out of jam, and once you start making your own, you just can't go back to store bought.

Our garden is starting to produce!  I love having Trey see where food comes from and that it doesn't just come from the store or the refrigerator!

Our first budding lemon! 

Randy's ingenious lettuce garden!

I don't particularly like having 12 heads of lettuce at once, 

but I guess that just means a lot of salad! 

Trey loves watering, which is great because I hate it. 

Our tomato plants are starting to grow! 

Trey goes to daycare on Tuesday and Thursdays to hold our full time spot for the fall.  On these days I have been working on some online courses, doing chores, and having lunch dates with my friends.  On the days when I am with Trey, we do a lot of playdates, go to the library, and relax at home.  I have signed him up for a few classes, the first of which was a music class and a total bust.

Learning how to do the mouse on the library computer
It's amazing how quickly they learn these things.

We do A LOT (and I mean A LOT) of make believe play with his figures.  

Right now he is very into superheroes and Rescuebots, with which I find much more difficult to use my imagination.  Whatever happened to Elmo and Mickey? 

Trey is really into this Superman raincoat (along with cape) that he got from Kai.

One day, a hot day, mind you, he wanted to wear it to daycare.  

Pick your battles, I thought.  Go for it, Superman.  

So in my last blog post I wrote about how much I'm going to miss the three clinical psychologists who I have worked with and learned so much from over the past seven years.  That is true, but what I might miss more is my daily connection with Kerry.  We probably email 20-30 times a day, text just as much, and see each other regularly for coffee, walks, lunches, or happy hours.  I guess I should use the past tense now.  Sob.  We are both moving on next year, me by force and her by choice, and while she assures me things won't change, I know it will.  My friendship with Kerry has been one of the highlights of my job at the ESD and I am really really bummed about that changing.

Kerry turned 40 right after school got out, so we helped her celebrate on Sauvie Island at Kruger's Farm Market.  They have summer concerts where you can bring picnics and hang out on the grass.  It was super fun, and Trey was really into the dancing.

Here are some fun pictures that Randy took:

Trey had a great time in the sun and enjoyed the music and picnic.  We will definitely need to go to one of their concerts again.

Kerry and I toasting to 40

I recently discovered a food buying group on Facebook that is in Sherwood.  It is great because the woman posts things all of the time for people to buy in bulk (produce, dairy, meat, etc.).  I got in on a butter buy from Larsen's Creamery, so now I have a freezer full of butter.  I liked buying from Larsen's because my mom used to take care of the owners when they were old.  Now I have a freezer full of beef, chicken, berries, rhubarb, jam, bread, and butter.  Someone has some cooking to do.

On Fathers

I talk a lot about mothers on this blog, but fathers don't get nearly enough coverage.  We have a lot of amazing fathers in our lives, and it's time they got some press.

circa 1978

Doug, Randy's dad, is a wise man.  I am not sure if I have ever met anyone so kind and calm.  He has been the easiest father-in-law a girl could ask for, and I love watching him as a grandpa.  As soon as he sees Trey, he is immediately down on the floor playing with him and engaging with him at his level.  Trey loves his Grandpa Doug so much, and even though we only see him a few times a year, they have a very special bond.  I asked Randy to give me some input on writing about his dad, and he said, "I wouldn't be the man I am today without my dad showing me the way."

Randy and I were lucky to have Doug marry us at our wedding.  It was such an honor to have his dad be the one who joined us as husband and wife.  We will always hold his role in our wedding in a special place.

circa 1977

My dad is one of the most honorable people I know.  We jokingly call him Honest Abe because he is the kind of person who would return to the cashier if he got the wrong change or inadvertently forgot to pay for something.  I think a good part of my character comes from having my father as a model throughout my childhood.  Julie and I have always had a close relationship with both of our parents (we used to say we were dysfunctional because we were so functional), but our bond with our dad deepened and strengthened when our mom was sick.

On Father's Day this year, Randy was out of town on his fishing trip with Jason, so Julie and I drove to Eugene to surprise my dad. He had no idea we were coming, and he was really happy to see us.  I think the thing my dad loves most in this whole world is his grandsons, and it was a fun afternoon watching them all together.

The thing my dad may hate most in this world when it comes to his grandsons is the trampoline. The boys love it, of course, but it makes my dad crazy. He is just sure that one of them is going to get hurt.  He was outside with us for a few minutes before he had to go in because his blood pressure was probably through the roof.

Hanging out on the deck 

I've always seen a resemblance between this
childhood picture of my dad and this angel.  

Do you see it?  

Grandpa Gerts, Case, Grady, and Julie 

Keeping the napless boys busy in Grandpa's office

I decided for my thoughts on the father in our house, I would ask his son.

My favorite thing to do with my daddy is: be with him on his shoulders.

My daddy's favorite thing to do is: cook bbq and watch sports games.

My daddy is really good at: cooking the bbq and watching his sports.

My daddy helps me with: carrying me because he is the heaviest and the hugest.

One thing I really love about my daddy is: because I have a lovable heart. 

I guess these answers are pretty similar to the questions he responded to at daycare. The boy knows his daddy well!

Randy, Trey, and I are so lucky to have three amazing, smart, kind, thoughtful, and handsome fathers in our lives.   Happy (belated) Father's Day to all of the dads out there!