Ned's Christmas Present

So when Ned reaches the age where he is allowed to drive and begs me for a car, I am going to get this one out of the shed and say "see, I bought you one Christmas 2007, don't say I never got you anything"!! You should see him on it, he is Speedy Gonzalez, I have to run to keep up with him!

Boys Toys

I always swore I would never buy my son a toy gun and yesterday I caved. He is obsessed with them at the moment and it doesn't help that his favorite movie, The Incredibles, has "bad guys" with guns in it. He even fashioned a gun out of a toy so I just thought enough already, let him get it out of his system, let him play with a proper toy gun. Last night, he went to bed with the thing! I am hoping that by not making a big deal out of it, he will get it out of his system. I thought the more I tried to avoid him playing with guns, the more he would want to, and I do think it is only a natural thing for boys to want to play like this. He also still plays with his cars, his new pirate ship and his Diego coloring book, so all in all, I guess he is still a normal little kid and hopefully I am not growing a gun toting psycho!

Messy Business

So Ned had another visit to the doctors today regarding his problem with pooping and he has this condition called Encopresis. It is all psychological and from the time that we get him to go to the toilet normally without screaming, having hysterics and refusing, it will take about 6 months for everything to go back to normal, so it is a lengthy process. He had to go for an x-ray and tonight I had the not so joyful task of giving him an enema, which I want to say was more painful for me but I highly doubt it.

I purchased a copy of The Incredibles, his new favorite movie, put it on in the portable DVD player, took him into the bathroom and did the job. It was horrible. He cried a little but carried on watching the movie until the full sensation took over and then it was on the toilet to get rid of about a weeks worth of.....well, crap basically! The poor guy cried but after it was finished, I think he was just so relieved and it must have been hurting him so much, so he probably felt much better.

I know I shouldn't be complaining because he is the one suffering, but it has been hard going and very frustrating the past week. His father has been of no help and tonight would not come over tonight because it was a week night and I now lived too far away! I live 30 frickin minutes away and this is your son we are talking about! Anyway, I am hoping we can get back on track now, and if it means putting The Incredibles on every time he needs to sit on the toilet, the that is what I will do!

Gifted or Just A Smarty Pants?

Since Ned started his new preschool four weeks ago, he has interacted with new teachers who knew nothing about him when he arrived. Within two weeks they told me they thought he was exceptionally bright and that I would have a lot of work ahead of me. He has also been into work twice with me (due to a high fever and nothing else but they won't keep him at school) and as I work at a university there are gifted and smarty pants people there, who have told me that Ned is unusually bright for a child his age. He is not even three and a half yet and I already know he is smart, but I am not sure about gifted. You don't want to label your kids, you don't want them growing up to be nerdish and incapable of functioning in the real world because their brains are off solving some sort of math problem, but you also don't want to deny them their education or prevent them from absorbing every bit of knowledge that they possibly can.

These are some characteristics of gifted children:

• Curiosity (definitely)
• Early an extensive language development (Ned was speaking Spanish at 2 and understanding exactly what he was saying)
• Early recognition of caretakers, for example, smiling (yes)
• Enjoyment and speed of learning (I cannot keep up with the kid!)
• Excellent sense of humor (he really does say the funniest things)
• Extraordinary memory (definitely)
• High activity level (non stop!)
• Intense reactions to noise, pain or frustration (sometimes, not always)
• Less need for sleep in infancy (as a three week old baby, he would take 20 minute naps and would be wide awake for hours!)
• Sensitivity and compassion (he is very in touch with his feelings)
• Unusual alertness in infancy (definitely)

Now I know there are mothers out there that brag about their kids, saying they are "genius kids" and all that crap, when you know that while they may not be as dumb as a box of rocks, they are certainly no Albert Einstein. I kind of find myself wanting to brag about Ned but wondering if I have got it all wrong and maybe he is just a normal kid? I have no other children of my own to compare him to, but when people who are relative strangers are telling me they think he is smart, I always do agree.

I will get him tested when he reaches the appropriate age, and I hope I don't turn him into a nerd who gets beat up by the jocks, but I also want to make sure he gets the best out of life and has every opportunity he deserves. In the meantime, I am just going to let him be the funny, smart and sassy kid that he is, and love every minute of it!

About a Brat

Ned's cousin being gone means two things:

1. He requires a lot more attention again and wants to play with me all the time.
2. He is acting like a total brat while I try and get him back into his routine!

Both are a little frustrating, but the second one even more so. Today we went back to the doctors office re his poop issue, which is considerably better and we are moving back into underpants now and away from pull ups. Anyway, he was vile in the office, kicked the toys and told the assistant to go away. It was highly embarrassing. Last night we were at the supermarket and a female cop was there and he was rude to her and then hit me in front of her. Can't exactly spank your kid in front of a cop now can you?!

Ned's Head

Poor Ned. One minute he was having fun with his cousin Marcus and the next, he is dripping in blood with a deep gash to the forehead. In steps Aunty Ellie, trained ER nurse to the rescue, who stops the bleeding and off we go to the hospital where he gets a nice bit of glue to the head and the hole disappears! He was actually really good about it. The cut itself hurt him the most, you could see the pain in his face, but then when the blood started to pour out he freaked, as did I! But by the time we got to the hospital, he was his normal self and was laughing as his cousin entertained him. He had me and my sister in stitches as he lay on the bed shouting "doctor, doctor, come back doctor" after the doctor initially assessed everything. He was even good while they wrapped him up in a sheet so tight that he couldn't move his arms and laughed as they called him Burrito Boy! Such a star my boy!

Family Time

My angel came downstairs this morning, hugged me and said "I was sleeping....and I missed you so much!" Man I love that kid!

He is going to daycare today after three days of fun with Aunty Ellie and Cousin Marcus, so I am not too sure he will be that happy with me about that, but they need a day to themselves to unwind and relax. She took them both up to the beach yesterday and they had a fabulous time playing and having fun, then they watched Peter Pan last night and fell asleep. Ned and Marcus are so much better with each other this year as opposed to last year when they argued about every little thing. They are actually playing together and acting like best buddies, which is just lovely to see. They are definitely going to miss each other when my sister has to go home.