Tommy Words- He wants to type

ten cats named charlie tommy alex margaret max andrew james teague eric clark
they like to play with the toys
i like to feed and water cats
tommy words

Wrestling is here!

In Wayne county, wrestling is big. They start kids as early as preschool age in wrestling. So of course, me (the mom who is always on a soapbox about too much focus on sports around here) is allowing my child to wrestle. It's just that parents let their kids travel for hours to participate in sports and there are very FEW scholarships from sports. If we live here forever, our kids need scholarships based on grades and achievements. I'm not sure what sports have to offer.

I guess I will defend myself for now. Last month, when I was in Salt Lake, Tommy saw from the window of the car, a Tai Kwan Do class and asked me what the kids were doing. Then he asked me if he could take that class. I had to explain to him that they didn't offer classes like that where we live. So when wrestling came available, I let Dave take him.

Last weekend I let him go to his first tournament because it was local, not hours away. Tommy came home with a bronze medal. I guess he pinned the first kid and then lost his last 2 matches. He was sad because he didn't get first. Dave let him think this way so he knows that he could have done better- so that he'll be willing to practice more. Okay, I'm not sure I agree with this... the kid just turned 5.

Now this weekend, they are driving 1 1/2 hours to a tournament and Dave just bought him wrestling shoes. You don't walk around in them, but only put them on when you get there on the mats. They were $33! Not to mention, we just signed him up for T-ball and Dave also bought a bat, balls, and a T. AND SO IT BEGINS... arrgh.

Funny Words

Tommy is at that stage in life where he gets words mixed up. So I am going to keep track of them and try and remember some that he's not saying anymore.

Bessert (dessert)- Mom, what are we having for bessert?

Tormato (tornado)- I want to watch the tormato in the bathtub when the water goes out.

Sumping (something)- Mom, let me tell you sumping.

Mudder (mother)- Mudder... (so I say, "What brudder?) We called Tommy brudder bear (brother bear) sometimes.

Dimples

Last week was another example of how well Tommy is received by almost strangers. We were at the clinic pharmacy last week getting Grace's prescriptions refilled. Tommy was standing at the counter asking me cute, sweet questions using please and thank-you. (I really can't remember, but I know it was nice.) Out of nowhere, the pharmacist gave him a full-size Baby Ruth candy bar and asked him where he got his dimples from. I'm not so sure how this will affect him as a teenager and young adult, but for now, it really gets him a lot of positive attention.

ABC's

I was talking to one of the preschool aids the other day. She said that Tommy is the only one who knows how to write at school. She said he sits at the dry erase board and writes all of the kids names, things like that. She told me that she explained to him when to use lower case. I've been noticing that he is writing in lower case as well. So they tell me he's smart. I know he's smart, but I think it would still be different if we lived in the city. It's always risky when I try to publicly separate the difference between schooling in the country vs. schooling in the city. But it is different- the school here is a Title 1 school which qualifies for extra funding because of its "needs". Was that PC enough?

Anyway, you can't help be feel proud when you get compliments, no matter where we live.

I Have Other Kids Too!

I have been spending so much time on Grace, that I'm not keeping a record of anything else that is going on in my family's life, especially my other kids. So I plan to have a blog for each child. We'll see how this goes.

I guess I will start with a couple of funny things that Tommy has done recently.

Earlier in December, I was working out and Tommy was watching me. During my routine, I do a lot of squats (I was doing Power 90- Beach Body.) He said "Squats again?...when I grow up I am not working out!" When I reassured him that he would work out when he is older so he can get big muscles, he replied "Dad doesn't work out!"


When we got home from my parents after spending Christmas there, Tommy looked under our own Christmas tree at the cabin and exclaimed Santa didn't bring me what I asked for- "You know, I told you, a pop-gun because my old one was broken and I had to throw it away and a car that drives underground." When asked for details about the car, he can't be specific. I think he just made it up. Earlier in the month, he told me he wrote a letter to Santa at pre-school and mailed it. When I asked him what he asked for, he told me he didn't have to tell me, only Santa needed to know. I told him he could whisper it in my ear and I wouldn't tell anyone, but he wouldn't. When I asked him what he wanted me and his Dad to give him, he said he only needed little things from us-like the littlest pet shop monkey with the tree. That Santa was bringing the rest.