Back!

Okay, that was fun. The boys had fun, Eric got into the finals for the shoot-’em-up division of the gaming con (but didn’t do as well in the finals), and I got a Swedish massage and a pumpkin-yam facial peel. Oh, and Sam managed to convince Eric to buy him a used GameCube and F-Zero, which he and Gabe had enjoyed muchly in the “museum” room of the con. They also enjoyed Mario Kart, but we couldn’t find a used copy there for sale.

What the kids really enjoyed, of course, was the hotel pool. Gabe is far more brave about playing in water than Sam was, which is interesting, considering that he’s just coming away from a short-lived period of bath phobia. He was willing to jump right into the pool for me to catch him, and he let me hold him under the arms while he paddled his hands and kicked his feet in an imitation of swimming. Sam still won’t willingly let go of us with his hands if he can’t touch the pool bottom.

Unfortunately, the pool also sparked the biggest behavior issues for us, too. You know, there are resources out there that talk about age-related behaviors, but none that I know that also discuss how the ages relate to and affect each other. I’m finding that six and three can really bring out the worst in each other. Six loves goofiness and pratfalls, so he likes to mimic the babyish behaviors of his younger sibling (who then either feels mocked or is encouraged to keep behaving immaturely). Three, on the other hand, doesn’t have Six’s growing ability to know “appropriate” from “in-”, so he embraces all the whispered (or shouted, in moments of uncontrolled anger) “bad words” that Six brings home from school. When I made him get out of the pool, I was “Stupid Mommy!” When Eric tried to wash the chlorine off him, Gabe told him he hated him and wished he was “dead to little pieces.” (Frankly, I’m not sure I’ve ever even heard Sam say anything resembling that last part, so I’m at a loss…)

Here’s hoping seven and four are a better combination. In the meantime, though, we’re just continuing to enjoy the good parts and search for more effective methods to deal with the rough patches. Gabe truly doesn’t seem to grasp that his words are affecting other people’s feelings; he doesn’t have anywhere near the level of empathy that Sam did at three, and he’s entirely driven by the need to get what he wants by whatever means necessary. That’s fairly typical for most three-year-olds I’ve known in my life, but I have to admit that I got a little spoiled by the preschooler who was different.

Pictures coming soon, I hope!