Everett is FOUR!

{February 19th}

Everett James is 4 years old!

That sure did fly by.

I still remember every single detail about the day he was born and man, he was the dreamiest baby!

So sweet and easy and the cutest baby there ever was.

He still has his good looks, but man- are we paying for it in these toddler years.

It has been quite the challenging year parenting this little firecracker of ours.

We've had a lot of rough days with a lot of tantrums.

When he's naughty... he is so dang naughty.  But when he's cute, he is soo dang cute and reminds us of why we love 3 year olds.

He is still extremely hard to discipline.

He doesn't stay in time out and is extremely defiant.

He doesn't respond to spanking either, so we've resorted to time out in his room where we have to hold the door closed. 

Then we usually have to remove every single thing in his room (besides the bed and dresser) because he chunks them at the door while he's screaming.

We've tried every single method... being nice, giving love, being tough, being patient... but after an hour of straight screaming, we just run out.  And when its the second or third tantrum of the day- forget about it.

For the most part, the tantrums have become less frequent so we are thinking/praying he's finally starting to outgrow them.

He is very opinionated about what he wears.  

I just never anticipated this being a big deal with boys so early and for the most part Braxton wore what I picked out for him.

Not this buddy.

We negotiate every single morning until I get tired of negotiating and running late and give in.

He wants to wear shorts and t-shirts every single day.

And no matter what pants I pick out (even if they are his favorites), he wants a different pair.

This boy really is made for summer time, ha.

He is finally starting to come into his own as far as interests.

He still likes anything Braxton is into but has really started to love superheros (especially Batman) and Transformers.

He loves to dress up in costumes and play pretend.

He loves to play outside and in the sandbox.

He loves to ride his scooter but he refuses to get on the new bike Santa brought him.

We're hoping he'll get motivated when all the other boys are riding around when it gets nice out again.

He finally gets his turn to play sports!

We've signed him up for soccer this spring and we can't wait to see if he gets more into than Braxton has.

He has Braxton's old cleats and he is pumped.

He loves baths and showers and swimming and all water, really.

We're gonna start up swimming lessons again this spring.

Brian has also taken him up skiing a few times when Braxton has his lessons.
I dont think he was ready for full day lessons this year so Brian has just been going down the bunny hill with the harness.  He's done pretty good skiing and loves to go down (and back up on the lift!) but they've had lots of powder both times and it's been hard to get him into the 'pizza' when he can barely get going on his own.
There have been a few stressful moments over other things when they are up there, ha, but I think he'll be ready for lessons next year!

He can still be the best eater... if he wants to.

If he's not being ornery, he'll eat everything- and still loves all veggies and fruits.

But we've had several days/nights where all he's had are granola bars or chips for every meal.

Lately his breakfast of choice is Golden Grahams - in a white bowl with a metal spoon :)

He still has a hard time playing on his own and if Braxton is home, and he's almost always where Braxton is... either playing nice or pushing buttons and annoying him.

When Braxton is gone, he's been better at entertaining himself but he mostly prefers to follow or hang out with me and play near where I am.

He's become so much more tolerant of Grayson and has even played and interacted with him a lot more lately.

Grayson just ADORES Everett so if he gives him positive attention, it is a total heart melter!

He is fiercely protective of his brothers!

A few months ago, Braxton came home crying with hurt feelings from some neighbor friends.

When we went back out to walk up and play again, Everett stormed up in front and started yelling "My brother can play with you if he wants to!  You better be nice to him!"

We've phased out naps for the most part.
There are a lot of days where he is a total bear by 4/5pm if he doesn't nap, but he'll always go to bed great between 7 and 8.
If he naps then bedtime is more of a battle and he's not tired until 9 or so.
I'd say we try to get in 1 or 2 naps a week to make it through.

This buddy sure doesn't lack any personality and he us the perfect middle child in our family!
We are sure happy to see him outgrow some of his terrible 3's and love this boy soo much!!
Happiest Birthday, Everett James!

He wanted to have a swimming birthday so we partied with friends down at the indoor pool in Parker.
He wanted to invite Caden and Caleb and a few neighbors.

I don't even care that these are a little blurry... this buddy loved going down the slide!