Me and The Boys

8 And 20

Eight years ago, I had recently arrived home with a newborn, wondering what on earth I was doing, and how I could possibly have fallen so completely and madly in love with someone in an instant. 

Now that newborn is a funny, smart, maddeningly stubborn and strong-willed, handsome young boy who, despite acting like he's oh-so-cool and grown up, is still very happy to snuggle up next to his mom and dad whenever he has the opportunity. And for that, I am so, so thankful.

We celebrated with cupcakes on the day of his birthday, and gave him his 'big' present - a new bike - for which he was very appreciative and thankful. But in true Gabe fashion, after thanking us profusely for the bike, he asked "there's more, right?"

He was holding out for his most wished-for gift - an Angry Birds game. And much to his delight, we did get it for him, and he and Dante have had a blast playing with it.

The big event, though, was his party at the movie theater yesterday. It went great, but I'm glad I limited him to inviting only 8 kids, because keeping track of any more than that would have stressed me out too much. We saw "The Lorax," and the kids all loved it. The best part of the day was watching them all get up out of their seats and literally start dancing in the aisles during the closing credits. It's pretty fun to hang out with a bunch of 8-year-olds : )

We marked another occasion this weekend, too - my last long, long run of training. I was almost as excited about that as I was about Gabe's birthday!

I know that I still need to run the full 26.2 in a few weeks, but having that final long run done is such a huge relief to me, and I already feel like an enormous weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

I ran the first loop of the course again, for 16 miles, then did a 2-mile out and back along the ocean to make it 20.

For the most part, it went well. Not without my tired moments, and not without moments where I wanted to quit, but overall, I felt pretty good. And my pace was good, too - 8:36 average. What I'm most proud of, though, is that I was very consistent with my pacing. That's something I typically struggle with, so to hold a pretty even pace for 20 miles was a huge accomplishment.

There's still some work to be done, including a few more track workouts and tempo runs, but the end is in sight, and getting closer every day!!!!

Carmine Milestones and Antics

Big milestone for the Big Ragu this week. His first haircut.

My baby is getting all growed up.

I'm really feeling surprisingly ok about it, though. I was a little melancholy, thinking about the fact that this will be the last time we'll ever go for a 'first haircut,' but really, I'm ok with that. This is our last baby, and I feel so confident that that's how it was meant to be. He's completed our family, and we're good : )

The haircut experience, on the other hand, was far from good. He was too confused at first, I think, to get upset, so the first few minutes he was pretty quiet. But then he caught on to the whole thing and the squirming and protesting and hand-swatting began.

We urged the woman to speed it up and just do the best she could, but there were still quite a few tears - and I ended up having to trim a few spots in the back a little bit more after we got home (with him strapped into his booster seat in front of an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse).

But all in all, it could have been a lot worse. And since his cute baby curls had turned into a combination mullet/rat's nest/baby dreadlocks, it was definitely time.

That first haircut does instantly make them look older, though. He's still got his little baby face, but he looks so much more like a little boy. A little boy who's going to be two in just a few weeks!

A little boy who has fully embraced the terrible twos, and has made it his personal mission to make as much noise and create as much chaos as he possibly can - and is excelling at fulfilling that mission.

Case in point - while I cooked dinner the other night, and the boys played a game of Bingo at the kitchen table, Carmine grabbed a toy from the living room and proceeded to whack it on the edge of the kitchen table over and over again, all the while grinning at me and yelling "BANG!  BANG! BANG!" 

And in true 2-year-old fashion, one of his favorite words is "no." When I tell him we're going to the gym, he says "No, Mommy." And when I finish my workout and arrive to pick him up from the gym daycare, he says "No!" and follows it up with a glance around the room and a very emphatic "MINE!"  as if all the toys in the daycare room belong to him, and we can't possibly leave, since the other kids would then be playing with all of 'his' stuff.

This month's choice for most dangerous hobby (last month it was trying to slide down the stairs instead of walk, and previous choices have included such fun activities as standing on the kitchen table and diving headfirst off the edge of the couch) is closing doors. As soon as we enter a room, he whips around and yells frantically "shut door! shut door! shut door!" With all the door shutting - which, truthfully, is really door slamming - going on, it's only a matter of time before someone's fingers get smashed.

Our little danger boy is also a good helper, though, and one of his favorite things to do is put his dirty clothes into the laundry basket. When we get him ready for bed, we hand him each item and he runs and throws it in the basket and runs back giggling. Who knew laundry could be so much fun?

Like any little brother, Carmine wants to do everything his big brothers do, and although we watch our fair share of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse (which, despite all their protesting and complaining, Gabe and Dante end up being completely captivated by), he's also watched lots of Scooby-Doo, and just the other day he grabbed the remote and started asking for "Ferb," so I guess he's just become Phineas and Ferb's youngest fan.

His eating habits are still horrendous, but we've all learned how to deal with it, and since Scott and I have made a concerted effort to ignore all his antics, meals have at least gotten slightly more peaceful. We still aren't ready for a family meal out at a restaurant anytime soon, but we're at the point where we can get through a dinner at home without any blood-curdling screams, so I'll be happy with that progress for now.

He's a handful, and he's a ton of work, and he can make me want to tear my hair out at times, but there is nothing quite like seeing him come running across the room in a little half run/half skip that he does, with a huge grin on his face. Or watching him carefully drive his trains around the wooden tracks, yelling "Choo-Choo DAY!!!  Choo-Choo DAY!!!!"  Or hearing him up in his crib while he's supposed to be napping, singing and bouncing and saying "hot baby, hot baby, hot baby." 

He does everything to the extreme, and while that can be exhausting in regards to the bad behavior, it is absolutely exhilirating and rewarding beyond words when he applies it to the good stuff : )

Milestones Galore

Our family is really piling on the milestones lately. I turned 40 on Sunday, and we celebrated in spectacular fashion, with a good old-fashioned hoe-down. And did I mention it was a surprise party? Scott wins husband of the year award for sure - he threw me the most amazing party, complete with a country band, a full barbeque (pulled pork, coleslaw, potato salad, corn, biscuits.... the works!), a ginormous cake, and ALL of my family and friends.

I did suspect that he had something planned, but I never imagined anything on such a grand scale, and it was a really incredible surprise. We had such a fun day. Some of the friends who were there were ones I hadn't seen in months, so it was wonderful to catch up with them. And the party was at a pavilion near one of the local beaches, and there was a huge field for all the kids to run around in, so they just ran and played (and danced to the band) the whole time - it was perfect.

I felt very loved, and very fortunate, and not the least bit bothered by turning 40. As someone else said to me - "40 is the new 30."  I have a fantastic husband, three beautiful children, a lovely home in a great neighborhood, an amazing family and friends, and I'm strong and healthy and fit - what's not to love?

Carmine's the one in possession of the other big milestone. He's finally really starting to talk. Not sentences or anything, but he's starting to really try to form words, and imitating things we say. He actually started, funny enough, just about the time that Early Intervention came out to evaluate him. And wouldn't you know it - he doesn't qualify for services, since his language skills are coming along so nicely now.

I'm not surprised. I knew he'd talk when he was ready to talk. It wouldn't have hurt to have the EI folks to help him along a bit, but he'll be just fine on his own. He now clearly says "Daddeeeeee!" whenever he sees Scott, and is trying to say "Dante" and "Gabe."  He still has to really work on the "m" sound, so he doesn't say "Mommy" nearly as often - I really have to prompt him to say it. But he can say that, and also can point to himself and say "me," which is so cute : )   He's also said "apple," "baby," and a few other things. It's getting to the point where it's hard to keep track of the words he's said - which is a good thing.

We still have to prompt him to say stuff, but I think now that he's getting the sounds and putting them together, he'll be babbling away in no time. He's definitely very visual, and watches your mouth intently when you talk, so that he can try to copy what you're doing when he trys to say the word himself. And when he's able to repeat a word back to you, he gets so excited and gives himself a round of applause.

He's also mastered the art of giving kisses. He loves to kiss his little stuffed animals, and will happily give us kisses, too, and after he kisses you, he giggles. He's so adorable, I can't stand it. He is just Mr. Personality, and attracts tons of attention everywhere he goes. I thought Dante had a lot of charisma, but Carmine puts him to shame. And that's saying something, because Dante does have a LOT of charisma.

Speaking of Dante - the third milestone belongs to him - our almost-preschool-graduate. Tomorrow is the big day, and I had been feeling very nonchalant about the whole thing. But today, as he played at the playground after school with all his friends, it hit me that this was the last time we'd be doing that with him, and the last time we'd be at that school for a long time.

We've been going there for three years - one year with Gabe, and two with Dante - and it's going to be really strange to not be there every day for dropoff and pickup. And since Dante was there for two years, he formed some especially close friendships, and he won't be seeing any of those kids next year, since they're all going to public schools and he's off to the charter school. I'm not worried about him - he does absolutely fine making new friends, and he knows a lot of kids at his new school already, since Gabe's there. But it will be a little sad to have to say goodbye to everyone tomorrow.

He's very excited, though. I know he'll miss his friends and his teachers, but he's MORE than ready for Kindergarten! He's been ready for months, actually!  He gets to go visit his Kindergarten classroom Friday afternoon, and he can't wait. He's always up for new adventures and new experiences - his enthusiasm for life is infectious : )

Tomorrow's ceremony will be beyond adorable. They'll march in, do their songs, get their diplomas, and have some snacks. Cute, and a little bittersweet. My little boy is not a little boy anymore. Thankfully I still have Carmine to enjoy some baby time with.

And thankfully Dante always knows how to inject some humor into every situation. He was making cards for his teachers, and he was telling me what to write, and this was how he began one of the cards:  "Miss Sheila - I like you, and thank you for cleaning up the tables after snack time."

Family Bike Rides Coming Soon!

So many things to catch up on, but first and foremost - Gabe and Dante are now accomplished riders of their two-wheelers!  No more training wheels!!!!! 

We worked on it with Gabe a little bit this past Fall, but it didn't go well, and his heart was clearly not in it. So we backed off. But this weekend, I asked him if he wanted to try again, and at first he said no, but then he changed his mind and said he did want to try, so we got to work.

We had him riding down a very slight incline in the yard (not quite as painful to fall on the grass), and I could see immediately that he was doing much better than he had the last time. He was still wobbly, and fell a lot, but he was staying upright a lot more, and seemed a little more confident.

And once Gabe started getting it, Dante wanted to get in on the action, too, so we took the training wheels off of his bike and got him going in the same spot as Gabe.

After about an hour, they were both riding around like pros! It was amazing to see them put it all together and really get it. And so, so cool to see them riding their bikes like big kids! There's nothing quite like seeing your kids learn a new skill like that.

I had them stay on the grass for a little longer, but they were really doing so well, I told them to go ahead and ride around the cul-de-sac, and that's what they did ALL AFTERNOON. They rode around and around in circles, and had the time of their lives : )   This morning they were both complaining that their butts were sore from sitting on the bike seat for so long. I can relate to that feeling! 

I can definitely relate today, since I got out for my first bike ride of the season yesterday morning. Sad that this was my first ride of the season, and it's June, but hopefully I can be more consistent with it going forward. I was out on the road by 6am, and it was a chilly start, but a beautiful morning. I rode 25 miles, and averaged 17.5 mph - not too bad, considering I hadn't been on my bike since September! The hills were challenging, but aside from that, I felt great, and it was really good to be back out there.

And after skipping my swim last week, I was determined to get a swim in this week, so I got in the pool today. I think I'm better off going on Mondays, because as the week goes on, I'm less and less motivated to do it. I felt tired and 'off' at first, but about halfway through, I was nicely warmed up, and the second half felt great.

I did just over a mile in about 40 minutes - standard for me. I know I should focus on drills and improving my speed, but my heart and head are too wrapped up in running right now, and I'm just going to accept that swimming will remain my weakest link for another year or so. I do ok, and that's good enough for me for now. The time will come when I'm ready to devote more time and energy to it, and I'm excited to see how much I can improve when that time comes, but it just isn't now.

Saturday's run was awesome, too. 14 miles, average 8:40 pace, and I felt wonderful the whole time. It was a relatively cool morning, which helped. And it's a good thing it wasn't too hot, because when I stopped for a bathroom break and refilled my water bottle, I dropped the cap on the floor of the bathroom. Ew. So that was it for water for me. But since it wasn't hot, and I had already had a lot of water to drink, I was fine.

We're in for a few super hot and humid days this week, but luckily it's supposed to cool off a bit just in time for our race on Saturday morning. It'll be warm, but not brutally hot and uncomfortable. I'm not hoping for a PR this time, since the weather is warmer, and I know I'm going to be a little slower because of that. But I am hoping to place in my age group, since this will be my last race ever in the 30 - 39 age group - I turn the big 4-0 on Sunday!!!!! 

I'm not sure exactly what we're doing to celebrate. I know Scott has something planned, but I like surprises, so I'm not pestering him to find out what it is : )   I know he'll make the day special for me - he's really good at that kind of stuff : )

And I might as well close, like I always do, with some of the boys' one-liners.

Yesterday Scott asked Gabe to turn off the outdoor faucet for him (he had just finished watering something), and Gabe tried to turn it off, but got confused and forgot which way to turn it, and started getting all frustrated, and yelled "Daddy, I can't do this!  I'm not a plumber!"

Dante told me the other day that he and his friend Sara would have very cute babies. I'm ok with them talking about getting married, but talking about how cute their babies would be is going a wee bit too far!!!  : )

We were also talking in the car last week about how the calendar works, and what a month and a year are, and Scott asked Dante if he knew what year it was. Dante thought for a minute, then answered "Um.... the 4th of July?"

I give him an 'A' for effort.

Milestones

Carmine reached out and grabbed a toy today! And once he grabbed it, he immediately brought it to his mouth, and I cheered him on, relishing this little milestone. 

He's smiley as ever, and did two other amazing things this week - yesterday, I put him down for a nap, and he woke up about 15 minutes later. But he looked like he was still really tired, so I gave him a pacifier and rubbed his head for a minute, and then left him alone to see what he would do. He fussed for a couple of minutes - not even crying, just making some noise - and then went back to sleep, all on his own! I don't know when that will happen again, but it was pretty exciting to have it happen even once! 

And today, he took a 2.5-hour nap! Since his average nap lately has been anywhere from 30 - 45 minutes, this was pretty momentous. I was going to wake him up and feed him before I left to get Dante for school, because I didn't want him to wake up hungry while we were out and about, but I decided not to, and I'm glad I did, since he ended up sleeping for almost another hour after when I would have woken him up. 

I have no idea if this is going to become a regular thing, but it would be nice if he started taking fewer naps, but longer ones - it would give our days a little more predictability. 

Then again, he may be right back to his catnaps tomorrow, and that's fine, too. 

Gabe's school is having "Spirit Week" this week, and he's enjoying it. Monday was 'favorite team' day, and of course he wore his Red Sox shirt. Tuesday was pajama day, which he loved. And today was "crazy hair' day, so I put a bunch of gel in his hair and spiked it up in the middle. He looked pretty cool : )  Tomorrow is Caribbean day, so I think he'll just wear beach clothes, and Friday is Decade day, so we're going to dress him 50s style. 

I'm doing well with Weight Watchers - lost 1.5 pounds last week, which is perfect, so it's definitely working. I don't feel deprived, either. There are days where I feel annoyed at having to track everything I'm eating (usually on the weekends), but mostly it doesn't bother me. I'm using up ALL my points, though, and with all the running I'm doing, I'm accumulating a lot of activity points, and used almost every single one of them last week. I don't know how anyone could do this without having the activity points - I'd be starving! 

I'll leave you with an observation from Dante - 

We were getting out of the car, and he had taken off his shoes and socks (they were full of sand from the sandbox at school), and I asked him to be sure to bring them in. He told me that he couldn't, because he was carrying his drink and his bag, and "I don't have three hands, because everybody in this world only has two hands." 

I couldn't argue with that kind of logic, so I told him he could leave the shoes and socks and get them later.

Say "Aaaaaahhhhhh"

Dante had his very first dentist visit today, and I was absolutely, positively astounded at how well he did. I talked it up a lot, and made it all sound very exciting, and he was just thrilled when they called his name and we went into the exam room. 

He hopped right up in the chair, and the hygienist was great, showing him all the different tools and what they're used for. He was enthralled, and had so much fun checking everything out and asking if he could press the buttons and turn things on. 

I think his favorite part of the visit was when she showed him the thing they use to suction stuff out of your mouth. She called it "Mr. Thirsty," and as soon as she told him what it was for, he reached over and grabbed it and shoved it in his mouth, and thought it was just the funniest thing ever. 

She was able to do a complete exam, checking all his teeth, brushing them, and applying flouride. It went so smoothly, it was amazing. And thankfully, his teeth look great. He got a new toothbrush, and a small toy, and it was just a great experience - far better than Gabe's two dentist visits have gone.

Gabe has only allowed them to peek in his mouth briefly, and at his last visit they were barely able to do that. It even took a lot of convincing to get Gabe to sit in the chair, never mind open his mouth, so it was really refreshing to have such an easy time with Dante today. Hopefully Gabe's next visit (in March) will go a little better. 

They both slept until nearly 6:45 this morning, which was SUCH a treat! And when the woke up, Scott was already downstairs having breakfast, so the boys crawled into bed with me and we just hung out chatting for a little while. A very fun way to start the day : ) 

We're in for some wicked cold temperatures the next few days, and winter is already getting me down, so I'm going to have to come up with some fun things for the boys and I to do, or we're all going to drive each other nuts. I'm usually not so bothered by the cold and snow and gray days, but they're really getting to me this year. I'm so anxious for spring to arrive, and it's really a pretty long way off..... 

I came up with one fun activity this afternoon - I let the boys loose with the digital camera. Here is some of their handiwork - 

Gabe's photos: 

The cat's whiskers. I suspect he intended to take a picture of the entire cat, but it didn't work out so well. I'm glad I just cleaned the kitchen floors, though, or this would have been a shocking display of just how disgusting they were prior to being cleaned! 

Speaking of clean, check out Dante's teeth!  And please avert your eyes from the booger in his nose.  

A very artfully composed portrait of Buzz Lightyear. 

Dante's photos: 

Frighteningly extreme (and somewhat creepy) closeup of Gabe. 

Mommy and Gabe torsos

And here's the rest of us!  Not a bad shot for a 3-year-old!

Looking Back

I'm still coming to terms with the fact that my baby is three....

Dante really shook up our lives three years ago, when he arrived 6 weeks early (a process that began when my water broke on Christmas morning!), and I knew that having a baby born really close to Christmas wouldn't be easy. 

Mostly, I feel like the poor kid's birthday is practically lost in the shuffle of the holidays, and that it doesn't seem like as special a day as it should. It's hard to even remember to buy his presents, and when I got ready to make his cupcakes yesterday morning, I realized that I was out of flour! 

Then, after he and Scott came back from the store with the flour, Dante began to talk about how we had to have party hats. I thought for sure I had a few in the closet, but nope. So back to the store I went. It just all seemed so last-minute and disorganized, which is NOT like me at all, and it kind of bummed me out.  

I think that starting next year, we're going to wait until after the New Year to celebrate his birthday. I feel like a week-long break from opening gifts wouldn't be a bad thing, either. Celebrating on his actual birthday just creates this 3-day long gift-opening frenzy. 

If only he hadn't been so anxious to join us so far ahead of schedule!  

Thankfully, though, today was truly a day of rest for us. Aside from me getting out for a run this morning and Scott going to the gym, we did a whole lot of nothing, and it was really, really nice. I'm looking forward to more of the same tomorrow : )  

The Big Three

It's been a busy few days, and we had a great birthday party for Dante today, but I am very glad that we'll be party-free for the next few days.

Our little boy came in our room at 3:15am, crawled in bed with me and gave me a hug. I told him he had to go back to his bed and go to sleep. Normally he'd fight us on this, but this time he went right back in his room and back to sleep.

Oddly enough, he entered the world 3 years ago today at 3:34am. I really don't think that it's a coincidence that he wanted to come in and give me a hug at almost exactly that moment - especially since last year, Gabe woke up and came in our room on his birthday morning just one minute before the time that he officially turned 4. Gives me goosebumps....

Anyway, we had a relatively low-key party - although low-key anything is really a tough thing to achieve when you've got a 3-year-old and an almost-5-year-old. Just the grandparents came over, and we had some pizza and cake, and Dante opened his presents, all of which he LOVED!  His favorite was the Hot Wheels trike from Grammy and Grampy. Daddy and Granddad and Grampy all worked on putting it together for him, so that he could try it out right away. He liked all the stuff we got him, too, but it was definitely overshadowed by the trike - which is totally fine. I'm thrilled that he likes it so much!

To illustrate just how much he loves it - we had to convince him to get off the trike for a minute so he could sit at the table to eat his cupcake. And when he was watching tv later this afternoon, he watched it while sitting on his trike.

But we have to be careful to call it a motorcycle - if we don't, he'll be sure to correct us!

I've said it the past two years, and I'll say it again this year - it's hard to believe that this little boy began his life 6 weeks early, weighing just 5 pounds. He is clearly thriving, and we're so, so blessed and fortunate to have him in our lives. Happy Birthday baby boy!!!!

Bits and Pieces

A milestone for us on Saturday morning - we took the boys for haircuts, and there was NO crying, NO screaming, NO squirming, and NO issues whatsoever!  Hallelujah!!!!  They both sat so nicely, and got such good haircuts as a result, it was fabulous. It was so cute, too - they both got their cuts at the same time, and sat right next to each other, so they were chatting the whole time. Hopefully that's how it will be every time from now on.

After haircuts, we stopped and got our pumpkin, and then picked up sandwiches and went and had a picnic down near the beach. It turned out to be super windy, so we ate quickly, but it was still a nice day for a picnic lunch, and the boys had fun. They especially enjoyed going down by the water and throwing rocks after they were done eating. 

Later that afternoon, we called Grammy, and Gabe told her how we had "cheetos, and some lunch" at the beach. And when she asked him what he ate besides cheetos, he really had to think for a minute before he finally remembered that he also ate a sandwich. The kid is a cheetaholic!

Scott and I went to see Jerry Seinfeld in Providence Friday night - absolutely hysterical! We've seen him one other time, and when we saw that he was coming to Providence again, we called for tickets right away. I laughed so hard, I cried!

But anyway, I got ready to go out while Scott was giving the boys dinner, and when I came back downstairs, Gabe told me I looked pretty - and he wasn't even coached to say it by Scott! And he also told me specifically that my pants and my shoes were nice. It's so cute the way he's so complimentary about things sometimes.

You should have seen him talking to Grammy on the phone Saturday afternoon. He carries on such a nice little conversation when he's on the phone, and he could sit there and talk for hours. He was just going on and on about all the stuff we had done, and talking about his Rescue Hero movies, and asked Grammy if she'd like to come over sometime and watch a Rescue Hero movie with him. It was really cute.

Saturday night we had a special treat - we watched Toy Story, and shared a bowl of popcorn - and we even ate while sitting on the couch! They were pretty thrilled. Gabe said excitedly "It's just like the movie theater!"

We had a great visit with Grammy and Grampy yesterday. I wanted to get the boys down for a visit, and also wanted to give Scott some time to himself, since he took care of the boys for me for most of last weekend. We had a fun time - they put on their costumes and went trick-or-treating at Grammy and Grampy's house and at Aunt Ree's house, and ate cupcakes and candy - quite a day for them!  They also got their souvenirs from Grammy and Grampy's trip - they each got a cowboy vest, which they were too distracted to really appreciate at the time. But when we got home later that night and were getting ready for bed, they both insisted on wearing their vest over their pajamas, so I think they were pretty pleased with them : )

It was a fun day, but as Gabe said just before we left CT - "We had a busy day!" 

I finally got out for a bike ride Saturday afternoon - the first time in I don't know how long. It was windy, and I haven't been on the bike in so long, so I had a pretty slow ride. But it was fun. Biking will never be my first choice, but I do usually enjoy it, and will hopefully get in a couple more rides before it gets too cold.

It's taking all the discipline I can muster to not run this week - and it's only Monday! I know I'm better off giving this shin a rest, though, so I just have to stick to it.

This is an exciting week, though - Halloween in just a few days! I have to make cookies for Gabe's halloween party at school, and I'm so excited - I love to make fun themed cookies! And we have a halloween playdate this week, too, so it's going to be a very festive week  : )

And So It Begins

I maintained my composure, and did not cry. I came close, but I held it together. And Gabe - well, he didn't seem the least bit phased by all of it. 

We dropped him off and said hi to his teachers and he sat down and found some toys to play with, and he barely looked at me as I told him how proud I was of him and told him to have fun. He glanced over at me quickly, said "Ok, I will!" and went back to playing. 

I really wanted to hang around for a few minutes to just observe, but I thought that since he was doing so well with everything, I should probably just leave. 

I'm glad he did so well. He was so excited, and talking about it all morning, and couldn't wait to get there. Seeing how happy he is about it makes me so happy for him. 

This morning he asked if Dante could come to school with him, and I said no, Dante had to be a little bigger before he could go to school, and he said "But I'll miss Dante." And as they were sitting on the couch at the time, he leaned over and hugged Dante and told him how much he loved him. And Dante hugged him back and said "I love you, Gabe." It was a pretty awesome start to the morning. 

The absolute funniest thing, though, was what he said to me in the car on the way to school. 

I was wearing one of my workout shirts - not a ratty old t-shirt or anything - a nice pink tank top that I just happened to throw on before we left. So as we're driving to school, Gabe leans up and says "Mommy, I want you to change your shirt."  So I asked "Why?"  And he said "Because that's not a shirt you wear to my school. That's a shirt you wear to the gym." 

And here I was thinking I had at least a few years before I had to worry about embarrassing him in front of his friends!