My
dear boy, this letter is 10 days late, and I’m sorry. It’s been quite a ride.
Let’s
start with what a brave little guy you are. You had your ear surgery at CHEO
this past month, and you were a total trooper. It was a long morning of fasting
in a waiting room while wearing scratchy stripey pajamas. You were amazing. The
surgery itself went really well, and it was such a relief to see you sitting up
on the gurney as they wheeled you back to us. We had a long wait, as you took
advantage of the opportunity to nap. You were a little fragile upon waking, and
you really just wanted to go home. You tolerated the twice daily ear drops very
well – you let us do them, even though you cried every time. There were some
complications after the surgery – one of your ears bled a lot more than it
should have, and it was so alarming to come into your room and find blood all
over the pillow. It alarmed you, too. At one point you pointed to the blood and
asked, “’Zat my fault?” and we were quick to reassure you that it wasn’t
anybody’s fault and that nobody was mad about it. Following the surgery were
more doctor’s appointments, another trip to CHEO to follow up on the bloody
ear, and you handled them all with patience and good spirits. We are so very
proud of you and have tried to really get across how brave you have been.
You
haven’t had any ear infections since the surgery, but we have both been quite
sick. The doctor thinks it’s been three different colds, and one of them
included a doozy of a viral throat infection. I’m really hoping that December
is better for us, health wise. Through it all, though, it has been a relief
that none of the colds have gone to your ears.
You
enjoyed Halloween and trick or treating very much. Your dinosaur costume, made
with love by Grandma, was fantastic. Grandma took you to see Great Nan and you
happily modeled the costume for her. You and I had a very nice time at the
Members’ Halloween Party at the Agriculture Museum. Although you did find
things a bit overwhelming, you loved the crafts. You can always be counted on
to love the crafts. Aunt Janine and Uncle Mark came with us to go trick or
treating, and you did really well. You said “thank you” and got quite confident
walking up people’s lanes. We did a few houses on our street, walked to
Grandmas, and then walked home. By the time we got back to our house, you were
ready to come inside.
You
still enjoy a visit to Grandpa Reg’s, but since he has moved to the Perley, it
isn’t quite the same. Our walk is now indoors instead of outside, and you miss
the fish tank at Alta Vista Manor. I enjoyed that routine with you, so this new
one will take some adjustment. It’s wonderful to see your relationship with
Reg, though. You happily give him hugs, and love to bring him toys to show him.
One thing that warmed my heart was that when Reg was choosing a few photos to
bring with him for his first night at the Perley, he chose one of you.
I
don’t know if it is as a result of your surgery, but your speech has improved
drastically in the last month. You express yourself so very well, in full,
complex sentences. You often get “I” and “me” mixed up, with adorable results.
(“Pick I up, Mummy.”) You have some great expressions. I love your recent use
of the word “actually”. You’re a big fan of saying, “Not yet.” And we often
hear, “I just do something” and “I don’t think so.” For a while, your
pronunciation was taking on a definite
Texas twang, which was odd. You would ask to get “day-own” instead of down. You
would talk about your “bay-ath”. It’s getting better, which is good, because
it’s hard to explain!
You
also incorporate talk in your play a lot more. We often hear conversations
between cars or stuffies, and you like bringing us a stuffie and asking us to
“talk him”. You love cuddling your animals. For portability, you love Little
Lambie. For big cuddles, nothing compares to Buster.
You
are still making great progress on the potty. We rarely have accidents these
days. You still have great reluctance about pooping on the potty, and you often
cry when you poop. We’ve taken to offering you a special reward: a Lego mini
figure. Things are coming along, but we’re not expecting miracles. We know it
sometimes takes a while before this second part of potty training really
clicks.
I
had a bit of a dilemma this year for Remembrance Day. I am eager for you to
attend a ceremony so I can explain it to you, but you are just too young. I
went to the Perley to attend the ceremony with Reg and Joan, and considered
bringing you, but you’re just too young and it isn’t appropriate. I hope we’ll
have a chance in coming years to have you experience a ceremony with Reg. In
the meantime, you can identify a “poppy flower”.
You
have a great ability to focus for a long time on certain tasks, like crafts or
baking. You can spend a long time in the bath just watching how water pours
over a car. You like to wrap things in a Kleenex or a wash cloth and tell us
it’s a present. You enjoy lining your cars up in what you call a parking lot.
In the bath, when we put the wash cloth over the side of the tub, you arrange
your cars on it for a “picnic”. It is very important that everyone be included
in the picnic and that we find room for all the cars.
I’ve
started taking you to the library again, and we’re both enjoying it. You love
books and are so excited when we bring new ones home from the library or, even
better, when Daddy brings you your own new books from his store.
It’s
a pleasure to give you things, as you are genuinely grateful. You are so polite
and say “thank you” mostly unprompted, and we’ve had great success this month
with “please” (although that one comes and goes). You are so good at asking
permission to do things or play with things (“Please, Mummy, I play with
that?”) and you are generally a pleasure to be around. Your laugh lights up the
house, much like your dimple lights up your face. Between your dimple and your
eyebrows, your face is super expressive and it can be hilarious.
We
are really looking forward to Christmas. This year will be a quiet Christmas,
as Grandma and Granny will both be away. As much as we’ll miss them, though,
I’m kind of looking forward to it being just the three of us for the first
time. There are lots of surprises and celebrations coming in the next month,
Pookie, and I hope you enjoy all of them. It’s such a joy to get you excited
for Santa Claus and Christmas.
Lately,
I find myself almost overwhelmed by waves of love for you. Your new abilities
to express yourself mean that we’re really getting to know who you are and what
you are thinking. And you’re fantastic. You are sweet and generous and funny
and loving and more fun than I could ever have imagined. I love you so much, my
darling boy. You bring so much wonder to our lives.
