Grandpa Turns 70 (week 311)

A week after Christopher turned three, we headed up the coast to celebrate Grandpa Mike's 70th birthday.  It was an uncharacteristic rainy weekend at Grandma and Grandpa's house, but we still had a great time playing with our cousins Sophie and Eli.  We even had our first sleepover on Eli's bedroom floor (which started with just a little bit of crying and drama).  It was also a weekend to see the Great Grandparents who weren't feeling too well.  And although we had to drive up and back in less than 36 hours, we used every moment for fun.

We are pretty good travelers now as long as we stay busy in the car.  On the way up, we listened to audio stories through our iPhone.  Christopher is really into Super Why, the reading guy, who answers questions and solves problems through books.  He loves tv, probably even more than I do, so it is good for him to listen to stories and use his own imagination.  We also listened to the classic story of Pandora's Box.  It is about a girl who is too curious and opens a box that she shouldn't.  All the earthly troubles spill out and make life difficult.  As with most topics these days, I quizzed my parents about every aspect of the story and wanted to listen to it over and over throughout the weekend.

Our relationship with our cousins is definitely improving with time.  I used to torture my Cousin Eli either giving him the silent treatment or avoiding him all together.  We have definitely found a lot more in common interest--whether it is riding bikes, competitive eating, or setting up obstacle courses and playing Wipeout (currently my favorite show).  There are still some points at which we cannot agree, but we are coming together and finding fun ways to play for extended periods of time.  Christopher mainly chases us around. Cousin Sophie is getting much bigger and for the most part, has her own agenda.  We are definitely boys and she is definitely a girl.  I am not entirely sure how to describe the differences, but when we are riding our bikes and scooters she seems happy to walk through rain puddles or give her stuffed animals kisses.

Christopher is still stuck in the storm.  We thought that his angst would subside somewhat with the beginning of his third year, but he is still in a constant state of angst and frustration.  He wants everything that I have...all the time; and, he has even had a tough time sleeping of late.  He is getting up at 1:00 am and 5:00 am every morning because he wants to see mommy or try to get into bed with the parents.  His fixation on mommy is even driving mommy crazy!