Should I be worried? Because everything to Peanut right now is a gun. And it is not ebbing People, it is just flowing! Rulers, hands, pieces of other bigger toys are magically (I say that very sarcastically) transformed into guns. And they all have names like, “And this one here is a shishunufel”. OK….

Seriously, should I be worried that I am raising a psycho? Gun fanatic? Psycho gun fanatic? Or a typical almost 5-year-old boy? I vote for the last one but is that cuz I am in denial?

My Peanut is a full fledged almost 5 year-old boy. No baby left in him at all and if you say there is he will simultaneously roll his eyes (I hate that!!) and do some kung fu move. He is all boy and ready to take on the world. He puts fake spiders in my shoes and laughs gleefully when I scream. Mr. Independant is all about doing everything by himself no matter how    l o n g    it takes. He thinks it would be and I quote, “So awesome if ants could shoot fire out their butts”.

Peanut is going to be a police officer for Halloween. Last year he was a fireman. Everyday heroes rock and I am going to enjoy probably the last Halloween that he will want to be something or someone that is not in a cartoon or a character that is advertised on underoos and gummy snacks.  

I am very sad that he is a baby no more. He will be my only baby that I get to raise since my uterus and surrounding organs are hostile and adoption eludes me for now. I am bitter that he did not have a normal babyhood and I did not have a normal pregnancy or early motherhood. I mourn that. A lot. I do not miss the reflux (Oh, the copious amounts of vomit and pain), the endless doctor and therapy appointments, and the mystery of the unknown effects of his way too early birth and him being so close to death. I do miss the closeness of holding him in my arms and snuggling his familiar scent knowing his sister was there too..somewhere.

Peanut is currently running around the house in his boxer briefs wearing sunglasses fighting an enemy apparently named Farty.

“Watch out Mama, he farts eggs!!”

“Bring it on Farty!!”

Just an FYI…..

Dear Peanut,

Well it is back to school for you and you are doing great :). You cry for a few minutes every time I drop you off. Wiping your tears on your shirt you tell me you are a tough guy.  Every time I pick you up from school though you are happy as can be. One day when I picked you up from school and asked you how school went you said, “Well, I am learning to control my fears”. Hahahaha.

We made sign for door: No Monsters No Bugs Allowed. That seems to help you feel better too :).

I don’t know what to think about this teenage attitude you have going on. Simultaneously I love you and I want to ground you to your room until you are 21 because you drive me nuts with your talking back and looks. What am I in for?!

Your boundless energy truly amazes me. You are nonstop from the very moment you wake, “So, what are we doing today Mama?” to every night when we tuck you in, “So, I was thinking about sleeping in your room”.

I LOVE YOU PEANUT. xoxoxo

Peanut’s first day back to school is today. He will have a new teacher and at a new location. This is going to be a pocketful of anxiety for him and add to it that I will not be there. But I know that he will be just fine and if it is not this time that he has to adjust, there will be another occasion right around the corner where he will have to learn to adapt.

He has taken to naming bugs that wander into the house. Slack encouraged Peanut to name the bugs as a way to be less scared of them. Apparently he bonded quite well with Fred the Moth and was very sad (lip quivering) when I thought I was doing the right thing by putting him outside. I so rock. ::sigh::

Oh, and did you know The Power Rangers rule?

I was thinking about how summer can be a relaxing and enjoyable time when kiddos are out of school, as long as there are some things to do Here is in Tucson, playing outside is luxury during the summer. You take advantage of the outdoors after it rains from the monsoons as it cools down nicely. Or you have the option of being outside early morning and late evening due to avoiding the high heat during the day. I am not sure why this town has very little shade implemented by way of trees; even indigenous water-resistant varieties are scarce. Poor city planning? I don’t know…Here is my list of things to do locally and without going bankrupt. If you live in a different town most, if not all, of these ideas can be implemented where you live

• Free movies. Every weekday during the summer, a few theatres offer free movies at 10 a.m. and adults pay $2.00 for admission. Concession stand snacks are usually discounted as well. Peanut and I went to the movies and we saw Alvin and the Chipmunks. Along with a soda, popcorn, box of candy, and admission the total was $6.00!
• Check out Tucson Children’s Museum. It is located downtown but is easy to find parking. The museum has a lot of hands-on exhibits and offers several art-type centers throughout the week. Admission is only a $1.00 on Monday nights during the summer. I buy an annual pass with unlimited use for my son and myself and it costs $40.00. It easily pays for itself within a couple of visits.
• The library is a great resource. Not only are there the obvious plethora of books available, we can rent children’s DVDs. There are also story times and play times throughout the week for infants through preschoolers.
• Story time at Bookman’s. I can’t find a link but they do offer a story time every week for kids of all ages. We went once and it was all about bugs with an interactive exhibit. Their number is 520/322-0911.
• Take them swimming. Tucson has a wide variety of community pools available to cool down and just chill. Admission is .25 for kids and $1.00 for adults. My favorite community pool in Tucson is the ARC-Edith Ball Pool located right by the zoo. It is outside, but is completely covered by a massive shade! There is a beach-entry type pool with several water effects and a “wading river” too.
• There is always the zoo, Peter Piper Pizza, and Chuck E. Cheese. All three I am conflicted about for various reasons, but they can be an option as well.

Want to know how make Flubber? It’s easy! Are you asking first wtf is Flubber? It is ooey gooey funky slimy stuff that kids love to play with. Need I say more? It is easy to make and the kidlets can help. Here’s how:

Ingredients and Supplies:

1 large mixing bowl

Mixing spoon

Wire wisk

16 oz. glue (Elmer’s or store brand; 4 regular bottles)

1 1/2 c. water

Seperate small bowl for:

3 tsp. Borax

2/3 c. warm water

and

Food coloring

1. Empty glue into large mixing bowl.

2. Using wire wisk, pour water into glue and blend. It will look like thickened milk.

3. Now is the time to add food coloring. I have food coloring in the form of gel. You, of course, can use the liquid type as well. Mix into the glue and water mixture to color as desired. Mix and then set mixture aside.

4. In a seperate small bowl or measuring cup (I use Pyrex), add Borax to warm water. Stir until dissolved. Pour water and Borax solution into glue and water mixture.

5. Immediately start stirring and the transformation begins!

6. Keep stirring! Then your Flubber should look like this:

Woohoo! Slimy fun that, for whatever reason, kids love! You can watch it slowly drip from a collander, mold something and watch it morph back to a puddle of goo, and (BONUS) it makes cool farting sounds when you jam it into a paper cup. Just keep it stored in a resealable container or in a resealable plastic bag. Eventually you will have to throw it out as kids hands are generally dirty and the Flubber gets dirty, too. Easy, cheap, and fun Let me know if you try it out!

Dear Peanut,

Ahh the month of June. Summertime. You know, where we drive each other insane because you are out of school and an only child :). Lucky me. Lucky you. Note the sarcasm. This month I could sum it up with one word: FEAR.  Fear of everything: shadows, bugs, shadows of bugs. You love swimming but, “Could there please be no water?” You love water guns and it is so much fun until you see a bug or a bird. I don’t know….

You love to punch the crap put of me or your daddy. You just walk by and randomly throw punches. Daddy loves it when you punch him the gut ;). Speaking of Daddy, you love to play with him. You are his Mini Me. You want to dress exactly like Daddy  down to the boots and jeans. Why can you not like Converse? No, cowboy boots it is. ::sigh::The remote control helicopter you two play with can entertain you both for hours. Weirdos.

You decided, on your own, to try sleeping in your own own bed! You stay there about half the night and then wander into our room bumping into walls, sometimes making it into the room, and sometimes just falling asleep on the floor right outside the bedroom door.

You have decided ice cream is fine for breakfast; I offer you  waffles, toast, etc., but you say, “Actually, strawberry ice cream would be great for breakfast. Thank you?” Nice.

I can see whispers of the toddler you used to be. Almost gone are the pitter-patter of sweet lil’ boy feet. You are growing up so fast into such a little man. Please slow down just a bit :). You don’t have to be all grown up yet.

Every night:

Me: “I love you with all of my heart and all of my soul.”

You: Pause. “I love you with all of my bones.”

I thought I would post a couple things Peanut has said as of late:

When trying to help him say “copy” and instead him saying “coffee”, Peanut tells me as he points to his mouth and throat, “My talking system is not finished growing yet and that is why I cannot say that”.

“Did I fart or just explode poop in my pants?”

Peanut has been quite sick this week with some nasty, and do I mean NASTY, bug that had him quite dehydrated due to the constant spewing, leaking, flowing out of every orifice. Poor kiddo. Anyways, as most of you know he has been going #1 on the potty for awhile but #2 was a whole other ordeal. Well, bribery works folks! Eventually….we finally got him to go on the toilet and he is now the proud owner of his very first bicycle He loves it and every day that he has been sick he has insisted to ride no matter how pale and sick we both are. We stop every 5 seconds so he can have a sip of his Gatorade and he pumps his legs twice, gets exhausted, trudge along some more, and repeat. Just diapers at night now and soon we will transition to Pull-Ups. Yayhoo!!