Bowman West

My Baby Boy...is really huge for a baby!

How in the world did Charlie get to be four years old?! I look at him and see this emerging person and can't believe he's old enough to be doing, saying, and asking all that he is. Each day is a new adventure and challenges me to come up with simple yet plausible explanations for all of his curiosities. So, what is Charlie into these days??

These are just a few:

1. Because he has a little sister on the way it's obvious that he'd have a ton of questions about her, me, family, etc. He's fascinated by marriage, parenthood, getting older, and everything associated. He talks about each and every one of these things daily. The most pressing issues for him right now are: a) being excited that he'll have a "friend" to play with when his sister gets old like him, b) who he's going to marry -- in order of preference -- Mommy, Cousin Jordyn, Grandma, random little girls he sees around town, c) what car he'll drive when he gets married and how he'll put his son in a carseat and keep him safe.

2. Charlie thinks he knows all about super heroes, Transformers, Star Wars, etc. even though he's never seen a single cartoon or movie involving them. He hears about them from friends, though, and even got a few Transformers and super hero items for Christmas. He finds it very important that I understand who's a super hero and who's not. Charlie dreams of the day (and asks "when" about 10 times a day) he'll be able to actually watch a super hero or Transformer movie.

3. Charlie is still obsessed with ears. He rubs his ears, my ears, Andy's ears, ANYONE'S EARS! It's one of the more annoying things I deal with on a daily basis. It's more like a pulling, squishing, hurting action than an actual rub. It's a comfort to him, like twirling hair or thumb sucking. It drives me crazy though, and I tried to tell him that he would be done with it when he turned four but so far I see no end in sight. He's accosted all of his cousins with it and I'm pretty sure his friends at preschool. I just keep telling myself that It could be worse!

4) One of the coolest and most humbling of Charlie's interrogations is his questions about God, Jesus, Heaven, etc. I can tell that he's thinking so hard about what it all means and how it fits together. His involvement in the Christmas and upcoming Easter musicals at our church has really got his mind churning. It's a humbling experience to try and answer his questions and realize that the simplest and most honest response to most of them are "Because He loves us." This Charlie can understand because he says "I love you" about fifty times a day.

5) One thing that makes this pregnancy so special is being able to experience it with Charlie. He already loves his little sister so much and has big plans for the two of them. I know that this will likely be the longest relationship that Charlie will ever have and I pray that they will be the best of friends. It's terrifying to think that just as Charlie has reached a point of self-sufficiency we're about to start all over from the beginning with another baby. I know it will be an adjustment for him but he's also going to be a huge help (I hope!). He even got his own baby doll (what did you expect from a sociologist mom?) for his birthday and he loves to feed and rock it. He says he wants to be a good daddy just like his!