Two was EASY. Three is a.....well, it's bad.
Ok. Maybe that's too harsh.
There are a few good things, I suppose. They are essentially the saving graces. Because without them, one might be tempted to disown one's child. Not me, of course. I'm talking in generalities.
So allow me to share all the great things about Preston at age 3: (that thankfully just barely outweigh the incredibly challenging/frustrating/blood-boiling/oh-my-god-my-child-is-posessed-by-the-devil, things).
He LOVES to sing. ALL the time. His pre-school teacher has deemed him the "resident singer." He will belt out singing anytime, anywhere, quite self-assuredly. Which is great. His current favorites: Be Our Guest, Hakuna Matata, and eclectic mixes of various children's songs that he will sometimes make up the words to as he goes. We listen to a ton of Pandora radio, and I have developed a renewed appreciation of Peter, Paul, & Mary, John Denver, Simon & Garfunkel, and every other gentle tune of the 60's and 70's. Preston loves to sing along and occasionally dance around with me.
The growing dialogue. There is nothing funnier than hearing words that have come out of your own mouth, being regurgitated at appropriate and inappropriate times, by your toddler. It really holds a mirror up to your own personal dialogue. One of the many things that has made me more mindful of myself. That being said, a lot of what comes out of his mouth does NOT come from me, and sometimes that stuff is even funnier.
My favorite phrases (and common contexts in which he uses them):
"Oh. That is not good." (like when he accidentally drops food or utensils on the ground.)
"Stop doin' that!" (anytime he doesn't want me touching him, like when I'm drowning him in smooches.)
"Can I....(*big cheesy smile*)...watch the TV/watch Wild Kratts/have a special treat... PLEEEEEZE???" (self-explanatory.)
"Ohhh, that's/he's/she's so cute!" (when seeing a new baby/insect/animal for the first time.)
"I love you, Mommy." (He breaks this out ALL the time. I'm confident it is usually in attempt to manipulate me, but it is still wonderful nonetheless.)
"Zack-bots! Prepare the rhino-dozers!" (thanks, Wild Kratts.)
"Mommy, you hurt my feelings." (usually when I've just put him in time-out, and he's trying to negotiate the terms of his punishment.)
"It's comin', it's comin', it's COMIN'!!!! (his narrative every time he goes pee.)
"That's the biggest one I've never seen!" (sometimes how he refers to a chunk of granola, or his first ice cream this year, or pretty much any food item that he's really excited about.)
He's totally potty trained! I haven't bought diapers since July of 2013. (Yes, I've been keeping track.) He does wear a diaper at night and is usually wet in the morning, but to me, that doesn't count. Otherwise, he is in big boy undies all day. He has a rare accident during naptime, but usually because I just don't feel like fighting with him to make him go potty before he goes down. So I take the blame for those.
He is SO. BIG. I just keep looking at him like, how big is this kid gonna get?!? I imagine in general, most parents awe at their child's growth, but when your child is clearly out of the normal range, it seems slightly more mind-blowing. I think this is what has contributed to his slower gross motor development. It's kind of like he's a lanky, awkward teenager who just hasn't grown into his body yet. The upside to this is, Preston is the opposite of a daredevil. I have seen kids Preston's age (and younger!) jumping off playground structures, leaping, climbing, hanging, etc...all incredibly swiftly and nimbly. Preston won't even jump off the living room sofa without squatting almost all the way down, and then, putting one leg down first, allowing himself to fall maybe 2 inches to the ground. He has essentially no agility at this point. Which is fine with me! I literally never have to worry about him doing anything risk-taking. Which leads me to the next great thing...
He is not a trouble-maker either. Yet. Aside from a small hitting problem (that we're working through), he is not yet intentionally getting into any trouble. I can leave him alone in any room of the house, and he consistently demonstrates no interest in doing anything mischievous. There is stuff I haven't told him to stay out of since he was a baby (ie my desk, the entertainment center, the kitchen cupboards), and he just seems to recognize those boundaries, and leaves them alone.
He's totally ok with naptime and bedtime. Sometime he puts up a bit of a fuss when it's time to go to his bedroom for naptime, but he concedes pretty quickly. We have the same routine for naptime and bedtime; books, song, and then I leave. I had to make some adjustments to naptime, so that he's allowed to play by himself in bed before he finally falls asleep, but it totally works. After I leave the room, he will play by himself for up to 30 minutes, but he never leaves his bed. Same thing for bedtime, I put his blankets on and walk out, and he usually goes to sleep without a problem. He will occasionally call out that he wants a drink, but that is about the extent of it.
He is a total boy. It is interesting raising a child in the 21st century, when everyone is hyper-aware of child psychology, parenting styles and techniques, and gender biases. As a parent I feel constantly bombarded by blogs, books, and articles about the best ways to parent, etc. Which is great, don't get me wrong. There is an endless trail of resources when you google "how to get my kid to stop hitting." But the one focus of trying to refrain from imparting your personal gender biases (which is virtually impossible, by the way) seems like a bit of a moot point, in a way. There is absolutely no way to shield your child from cultural gender biases. I think I could buy Preston dolls, tea sets, and everything pink, and raise him in a bubble, and he would still go around smashing the dolls, making exploding sounds, and in general, acting like a WWE wrestler, even if he was wearing a pink tutu.
