Banks is Three

I don't even know how to describe Banks in words. He is such a special and unique little guy, and I can never predict what he is going to say or do in different situations. It's so much fun watching him grow and develop. His heart is so precious and kind, and he is consistent in that he doesn't like to disappoint those he loves. He does push his limits and act out at times, but he always comes around and wants to do the right thing. I've had to really read up and experiment with ways to discipline him because "typical" discipline always seems to backfire with Banks. Spanking him makes him more aggressive, and time out seems to make him feel isolated and causes him to withdraw and act out more. I've learned that getting down on his level, making eye contact, and having a consistent verbal discussion every time he acts out is much more effective for Banks. Although it's much more time consuming, it definitely helps him turn his behavior around and express himself in a constructive way. When that fails, a threat to take away TV for the evening usually does the trick.

Banks is now fully potty trained as of about October, and he got to move up classrooms at daycare at the beginning of December. His learning and development has taken off rapidly since he moved up. He knows the alphabet song, can count to 10, knows all his colors and shapes, and is beginning to learn to identify written letters and numbers. As worried as I was about his language development for awhile there, he has officially surpassed any expectations and he talks a million miles a minute, asking a thousand questions a day. He keeps us laughing constantly now with the things he comes up with. He LOVES anything music related, and was the star of the show at his Christmas program. He sang "Jingle Bells" for a month straight. He really enjoys singing and dancing. Some of his other favorite things include Elmo, Mickey Mouse, "cleaning,"tractors, fire trucks and "water hoses," watching TV (Daniel Tiger, Paw Patrol, Mickey, Handy Manny). He's recently gotten into superheroes (I'm guessing from hearing the other kids at school), and he tells me all the time that he has "big muscles." He loves to pretend, and we've gotten him several dress-up items, such as a fireman outfit and doctor kit.

We had Banks' 3rd birthday party at Hopewell Fire Department. He was so excited and talked about it for weeks. When he arrived at the party, the sweet firefighters turned on the lights and sirens of 3-4 of the trucks, and Banks was TERRIFIED. I'm talking shaking, don't put me down, terrified. It took him about an hour to warm back up and play with his friends. He specifically requested a cookie cake at his party, so I ordered him one from the Chocolate Shoppe in Greenville. He loved it. Casey cooked him some cupcakes and we took them into his class on his actual Birthday and let the kids sing to him and have cupcakes.

Christmas was so much fun with him this year. In addition to the Christmas program, we enjoyed watching him learn about all of the traditions - elf on the shelf, movies, songs, Santa and his reindeer, lights, trees, and most importantly, "baby Jesus in his cradle." He was so excited during the whole month and it brought so much joy to us to watch his excitement and innocence. He asked Santa for "TWO vacuums," and a "laser," which is actually a toy gun that lights up, but we call it a laser. Santa brought him one vacuum that really sucks up stuff, a balance bike with a helmet, the "laser," and a variety of play dough toys, books, coloring books, pajamas, etc. The first thing out of his mouth when he saw everything Santa brought was, "Where is the other vacuum?" We were able to defer the question by pointing out his new bike, but he did bring it up a couple more times throughout the day. Patrick and I had to laugh about that because it's so typical Banks... he doesn't forget a thing!

Banks is SUCH an amazing big brother. I had been so nervous about how he was going to adjust to having a new baby in the house, and how it was going to affect him. He has taken to Georgia better than we could have even asked for, and he loves her with all of his heart. He kisses her, tells me to feed her when she cries, covers her up with blankets if he thinks she is cold, and talks to her in his special "Georgia" voice. He has to kiss her every night before going to sleep, even if she's screaming. Watching him with her makes my heart literally explode. It's almost too much for me to even handle.

Our sweet boy loves to have a routine and to know what to expect. If we change anything up on him too much, it throws him for a complete loop. We have to stay very consistent with his bedtime, daily routine, meals, etc. He is still a pretty picky eater, mostly when it comes to trying anything new. I'm just hoping time will help with that as he gets a little older. He is still the best sleeper we could ask for, sleeping 11-13 hours every night and still taking 2-3 hour naps.

He had his 3 year check-up yesterday, and he did great. He had gotten his flu shot a couple of weeks ago, so he didn't have to get any shots (although the flu shot didn't bother him at all, he just told the nurse to, "get him a bandaid"). He was so funny talking to the nurses and Dr.Maddox. He asked the nurses a thousand questions about all of the equipment in the room where they check him in, weigh him, take his blood pressure, and measure him. He danced and played "boo" with everyone that walked by in the hallway while we were waiting on a room. He asked the nurses if they were "busy." He told Dr.Maddox that he is his "fwiend" and asked to play with his "flashlight" and stethoscope. Of course Dr.Maddox let him! It is always such a relief to have a good checkup with Banks. His health is something I will always worry about with everything we've gone through with him, and I pray about it every single day. We have his 6 month kidney check at the end of January.

Weight: 32 pounds, 51%
Height: 37.5, 47%

Banks continues to be my heart. Literally. Every single day he makes me so happy and proud, and I love him in a way that I can never love anyone else. At night, he tells me that he wants to "love me" and he wraps his arms around my neck and nuzzles his face in my hair. I rub his back every night and he always asks me to do it "again" and "again." I go to bed every night with a heart full of love and counting my blessings. I don't know what I did to deserve such a precious gift from God, but I am so thankful. I can't wait to see what year #3 brings!