Ethan at Four

Ah, four.  A fabulous age.  We are having so much fun watching and parenting Ethan at this age.  He is gaining the logic and reasoning of an older child but still has the sweet innocence of a younger child, which makes this such a great time of life.  

Ethan is still as easy going as ever, loves to help and be a leader around the house, and while at school doesn't need to be the center of attention but always wants to be in on the action.  He is so silly and has the most contagious laugh.  He follows direction and wants to please and loves to laugh with his friends, which is probably why his teacher is crazy about him.  

Now that he is a little older, he takes being the older brother seriously.  He loves creating games for he and Bebe to play together and doesn't mind that she is constantly imitating him.  Most of all, he loves touching, playing with and making Cole laugh.  He entertains the little guy as we drive in the car, as he does tummy time and in the morning as they snooze in bed.

Even compared to other four year olds, Ethan is such a sweet and polite kid.  Now that he is four, he seems to truly understand his words have power and the kind words he says seem so genuine.  He tells Bebe he is here to take care of her so she doesn't get hurt.  Or when we ask which game he wants to play or where he wants to go, he often says whatever makes you happy Daddy makes me happy.  Or I really like that shirt you are wearing today.

The world seems to have opened up to Ethan over the last few months.  We can tell he sees new things in the same old places we always visit - the bugs and snakes and turtles at the arboretum are much more interesting now and create fantastic questions for him; as we drive down the road he is trying to figure out the rules of driving and when to put on blinkers, change lanes, etc; he notices interesting new things on each walk to the park and likes to talk about them.  Best of all, he loves going to the museums and is interested as we tell him about everything around him.

His imagination is more vibrant at this age.  He creates whole scenes and stories in his play - instead of just fighting generic bad guys he now fights ghosts or ninjas who are coming from all directions looking for his treasure.  One part of his imaginative play has not changed - he is always Superman.

His running, jumping and stunts have all taken another step up as well.  When he turns on his 'jets' he actually has pretty good speed these days.  And his favorite stunt is to run up onto a slant or wall and do trick jumps off. 

His favorites: sports - baseball and soccer; foods - noonoos, portillas and stachios (noodles, tortillas and pistachios) ; book - Animals; song - Peanut Sat on a Railroad Track and Let it Go; toy - marble game and airplanes; friends - Ollie and Ollie.  

My favorite trait of Four year old Ethan is how affectionate he has become.  He loves to hug now (which he never really has before), and his hugs are so strong and sincere.  Now that his words seem more genuine, I melt when he looks me strait in the eyes and tells me how much he loves me and loves playing with me.  Each night he tells us he loves us all the way to the moon and back, then to Nana's house, then to Gigi's house, then back to our house...and sometimes a few more stops along the way. That's alotta love.
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Sweet E being awesome at Four!