Gabe and Dante rediscovered their Legos a few weeks ago, and it's been all Legos, all the time, ever since. They're mostly enthralled with the Star Wars Legos, but those got mixed up with all their other Legos, so it's just a whole big bunch of Lego goodness, and they're in heaven.
And it just so happens that just around the time of the resurgence of the Legos, the Scholastic book fair was going on at Gabe's school, and he had been perusing the catalog and had made a list of all the books he wanted to buy. I told him they all looked very nice, but that I was only going to buy him one book and Dante one book.
So of course he chose the book that cost $22. I explained to him that I hadn't planned on spending quite that much on a book (I don't spend that much on books for myself!!!), but that if he really wanted that book, he could give me $10 from his piggy bank, and I'd pay the other $12. He really, really wanted that book, so he gave me the 10 bucks, and we got the book - the Lego Star Wars Visual Dictionary, which is exactly what it sounds like - pictures and descriptions of all the Star Wars Lego sets. Thrilling - for a 7-year-old boy.
He is now just as obsessed with this book as he is with the Legos themselves, and has been poring over it every chance he gets. And he's actually reading it, which is kind of amazing, since it's way beyond a 1st-grade-level book - it's got a LOT of words, and a lot of big words. He's doing well with it, though.
The only catch to all this is that this book had a page that showed all the Star Wars Lego mini-figures, several of whom come with light sabers. None of our Star Wars Lego mini-figures come with light sabers. It quickly became apparent that were going to HAVE to get some of these light-saber wielding mini-figures. Gabe started talking about them early last week, and continued right into the weekend.
I held him off as long as I could, but by 4pm Sunday afternoon, I couldn't take it anymore. I grabbed a Toys R Us gift card he had gotten for his birthday and told him we were going to go get the mini-figures. Unfortunately, Toys R Us does not carry them. And, as we found out, not many stores do, and they're apparently a tough item to find.
Thank you, internet: A quick search of Amazon turned up not only a few of the mini-figures we were after, but also a set of 6 mini-figure light sabers. We ordered $25 worth of mini-figures and accessories, and are now anxiously awaiting their delivery.
I'm not exaggerating when I say we're anxiously awaiting them, either - I tracked the packages with them online this morning, and told Gabe we could check every day and see where they were, and how much longer we'd have to wait until they arrived. I figure we can also look at a map and I can show him where they are - impromptu geography lesson! Again - thank you, internet!
It was quite a saga, but I have to say, I was really impressed with how well Gabe handled the disappointment of not being able to get the mini-figures at Toys R Us. He was clearly disappointed, but he didn't freak out. And when we were walking back out to the car, he looked at me and said sadly "It's ok, Mommy. I know you tried with all your heart. But it's a sad, sad day."
He's not too dramatic, though, is he?
I took both he and Dante for a run this morning. I took them separately, because I didn't want them to be fighting about who should slow down, or who should speed up. Gabe and I went first. We set off, and I had just come back from my own morning run, so I still had my Garmin on, so I reset it and started it up. We had only gone a hundred yards or so when Gabe said to me, with a huge grin on his face, "Hey, this is fun!" That made my day : )
He only lasted half a mile, and we stopped to walk a few times, but he seemed to enjoy it. I know I did!
Next Dante and I headed out. I figured he'd go as far as Gabe, or maybe even a little less. But when we got to the point where Gabe and I had turned around to head home, Dante wanted to keep going. And at every possible turnaround point after that, I kept asking him if he wanted to turn around or keep going, and he just wanted to go, go, go. So we went!
In the end, we went around the entire neighborhood, running 1.62 miles! We did some walking, too, of course, but not as much as you might think. He ran his little heart out! And true to form, he talked the ENTIRE time!!!!
It was a fun thing to do with them, and I'm going to try to do it once or twice a week. But from now on, Dante and I will have to keep it to one mile or less, because the 1.62 miles took us almost 25 minutes!
I'd love it if they both loved running, or if even one of them loved running. I'm never going to force them to do anything, but I'll certainly encourage it. Nothing wrong with them starting the day with some exercise, either : )
I wrote last week, I think, about how Carmine hadn't been terribly interested in nursing at night anymore. Well, as of the last two nights, he's had no interest at all. Zero. None. He just wants to snuggle with me for a few minutes, and then I put him in his crib and he talks or sings to himself for a few minutes, and then goes to sleep.
I'm sad. I knew it was coming, and I tried to prepare myself, but I'm still sad. He's still nursing really well first thing in the morning, but I don't know how much longer that's going to last, since that's all we have left. I suspect that will be gone soon, too.
I know it's better that it's happening this way - it's been a gradual process, and it's been totally his choice - but it's still really hard. I see him growing up, and I know he's growing up, but this feels like such a concrete manifestation of that - it's tough to take.
I'm trying to focus on the positives, though - the fact that, despite a rocky start, we finally hit our stride a few months into this, and have been going strong ever since. And that I've nursed him longer than I ever made it with Gabe and Dante, and it's been something really special that we've shared, and I'm so incredibly proud that I stuck with it. My perseverence definitely paid off : )
So until he's done for good, I'll just savor those moments with him in the morning, because I know one day soon those will be gone, too.
Thankfully he's a super snuggly baby, so even when he's completely done with nursing, I know he'll always be happy to snuggle.
He's a funny baby, too. After dinner tonight, he wanted to climb up on the couch, so I told him to go get his stool. So he brought me my shoes. I thanked him for the shoes and asked him again to go get his stool. He brought me a napkin from the kitchen table. I thanked him for the napkin and asked him to go get his stool. He brought me a book.
This went on and on, with him running off to get me random items every time I asked him for his stool. Gabe and Dante were laughing hysterically - and so was I. And Carmine was just so pleased with himself - giggling and laughing right along with us. His big brothers make him laugh all the time - I think he was pretty happy that he was making them laugh for a change : )
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