Caden

 Caden sure keeps me on his toes!  We'll be driving in the car and he'll ask (this one was just today), "Mom?  Remember the time we were at the airport when Casey was coming home and great Grandma popped my gold balloon and Mark's wife gave me a silver one and we got in the car to go home and your hair got stuck in dad's watch and it pulled it out and dad said he was sorry?  Why?"  He remembers the smallest details and  is always wanting to know "Why?"

Caden started preschool back up.  He is in his buddy Sean's class and the first day the teacher said they were having a hard time with wrestling during center's time.  It kind of made me laugh, but luckily they've gotten better.   One day when I asked him how school was that day he said, "Mom?  Hannah kissed me!"  I asked him what he said, "Nothing--I just wiped it off."

Recently at family night we were acting out if a friend was trying to get you to do something.  He's been trying that out on me, "Please mom?  Come on--if you play with me I will be your son." instead of "friend" like we'd gone over.  

He's also trying to us positive reinforcement on me.  He told me, "Mom, if you don't put me in time out for 3 days, I will give you a secret identity."  Then the next day, "Mom, you're doing a really good job not putting me in time out...I think you're going to get your secret identity!"

He still loves catching rolly pollies on our morning jobs.  Yesterday I didn't have a container to put them in, but let him just carry it in his hand.  When we got home he couldn't find it.  We searched the stroller but finally determined it had gotten away. 

About ten minutes later, he all of a sudden said, "Oh!  I did bring it home.  It was just stuck in my elbow."

Gross.

One of our favorite things is to go to garage sales together.  I give him a few quarters before we leave and let him pick out a toy or two.  When we were in Utah, we were at garage sales with my parents one day.  Caden had spent all of his quarters for the morning.  When we were leaving, Caden was carrying a book and my dad told him to put it back because he hadn't bought it.  The lady said, "Actually-he did.  He found a penny on the sidewalk and gave it to me for the book."  Well played, Caden.

Everyday he has preschool I put a little surprise treat with his snack.  Usually it's 3 or 4 skittles or gummy bears.  And everyday when I pick him up, the first thing he does is open his lunch box and pull out one treat that he saved for me.  It really is the sweetest thing ever.  One day on the way out of class his teacher gave him a smartie.  He bit it in half and gave me a piece.  Life as a mom doesn't get much better than that.