Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Happy Birthday, Alessandro!


A year of photos of our little man -- we love him so much! Last year, he definitely was still a baby; he's all toddler now. He started pre-school (or a week of their summer school version) last week and adores it. He's been dying to go. When we'd go by the school to drop off the girls, Alessandro would wriggle out of my arms and run across the driveway, down the breezeway, pull open the door himself (which usually gave time for the girls and me to catch up to him) and screech down the hall, banking a hard right at their classroom door. He'd run straight in and find a place at a table or on the carpet where he'd dump over a bin of plastic animals and start playing with the other boys. They would just look at him, then look at me, and wonder to themselves how to be polite about getting that little boy out of the way of the game! After I'd check the girls in, he'd kick and scream and wriggle out in more attempts to stay with the rest of the gang.
At the class's pre-school graduation, I was pleased to hear a mom say, "You know, we need a picture of Alessandro with the class. He's like the class mascot!" Well, he's got a class of his own now, however, I've been ever-so-worried about the nap schedule routine at school. Alessandro's an early napper and, frankly, it's worked out well that way since I have to pick up the girls from school by 2:15. At school, he'll have to learn to shift his nap forward 2-whole hours. I'm crossing my fingers. THAT schedule will actually come in handy for the girls' Kindergarten schedule next year, so I hope it sticks.
Alessandro will be at pre-school today for his birthday. I think I might bring in a couple boxes of Popsicle for his class to help him celebrate (again)!
What can I say about Alessandro on this, his second anniversary of life: he's so full of energy, an optimist, determined, pretty good at sports, loves his sisters, balloons are his best friend, is aware of his limits, but tests them often, is stoic, and the light of our lives. I could never imagine life without him.
On this day, two years ago, he was a birthday present to US!