Bentley is a boy of many words and questions. Those of you who know him are smiling and nodding your head in agreement right now. When I say the boy does not stop talking....I mean from sun up to sun down. He wakes up every morning running/crawling/slithering/climbing into our room asking if we can pretend to be the (fill in blank with any animal) family and immediately starts talking about all the things we can do as this particular animal family. He goes to bed trying to squeeze in a few last words, questions, thoughts, prayers before he closes his eyes and says good night. Yesterday I came in from work and I heard his little voice going upstairs in his room, a mile a minute, and I just smiled. Michel immediately welcomed me home, looks at me with relief, and passes the question-handling torch. My turn. We have implemented a 45-minute time period at dinner, by which he must be done eating his food in order to get fruit for dessert. Otherwise he will talk the entire dinner and not eat a thing. So now he tells us, "After I am done eating, remind me I have something very important to tell you." Joking aside I love this chatter box, his curiosity and the life he brings to our home. Sometimes it is just a little t.i.r.i.n.g. Some of you have children like this, and I suspect you are smiling thinking of them and the life they bring (and maybe nodding in sympathy too).
One positive is that we always know what Bentley is thinking. ALWAYS. Which I love and I cherish. And so since I've been pregnant we have been able to follow along with his trail of thoughts, questions, observations, and realizations about the baby, in real time. So I started writing them down. There will likely be a round 2 to this post at the end of my pregnancy, perhaps a round 3 once baby boy is born. They are in chronological order, so they get better as you go!
First morning after we told him, B's first words were "mom how big is the baby now??" And the same question an hour later...it's going to be a long wait for him!
First day after we told him, at pre-school: "Guess what, my mom has a baby in her tummy!" To everyone he sees. Good thing we waited to get through the first trimester to tell him.
"Don't worry mom, I can change the baby's diapers, I saw Moses and Elijah's mommy changing their diapers so I know how now."
"Dad, we need to build a wall in the play room so we can separate my toys and the baby's toys. I don't think he knows how to play with my toys and he might break them."
A few weeks later...Still talking about that wall in the play room to separate his and the baby's toys...he will be in for a rude yet necessary awakening when it's time to share his parents, his house, others' attention, his life with this baby!
"Mom, can I learn how to change the baby's diapers and that will be one of my new chores?" Oh yes you can sweet boy!
"Mom, is that a maternal clothes?" he asks me many mornings after I am dressed for work.
"Mom, for Christmas I am going to get you some maternal clothes so your belly won't be tight and my baby won't get hurt." Perhaps I should take note that my regular clothes are getting too tight?
"Mom, why are these bigger (pointing to my chest)? I thought the baby was growing in your stomach?" No response but a stunned, blank stare from me.
B, distraught for a third day in a row: "Mom, its just not fair that girls have 4 private parts and boys have only 2." (Note: Bottom counts as 1 and chest as 2 for those trying to do the math.) Michel's response when I asked him how I should respond: "One day he will appreciate the extra 2 private parts girls have."
"Those (referring to my boobs, again) should not be a private part if that is where milk comes out for the baby! Eww!" I had to explain the feeding process since B was insisting on being the first one to feed the baby using his old Cars sippy cup.
Another "It's not fair!"..."That is not fair at all that boys cannot be pregnant. I will never have a baby but girls can." Yep saving this for wedding material. No sympathy for you on this one, dude.
After explaining what the feeding process will be for the new baby (for the tenth time, Bentley is very intrigued by it all)..."Oh, so you are going to be like the baby's sippy cup!"
"Mom how come the baby is naked in your tummy? Eewww that's gross."
B: "Mom why does your tummy hurt, do you have too much milk in there?"
Me: No, sometimes when you are pregnant you don't feel well.
B: "Oh so you don't have milk in there?"
Me: No, my body makes milk for the baby after he is born.
B: "Oh. Well, then why are your chest-es growing so big already?"
Should we be concerned by his chest obsession at the age of 4? Goodness gracious. Michel says no, he is a dude.
Naming the reindeer around Christmas time.."Dasher, Dancer, Cancer..."
A few days before Christmas: "Mom I'm going to walk next to you and take you around the house since we don't have a donkey for you to ride on."
Bentley's suggestions on possible baby brother names include Pee and Poop. We will no longer be seeking his input.
"When I am 8 and my baby brother is 4 can we share a room?" He likes figuring out how old the baby will be when he is a certain age.
"Mom, I will be helping you with everything you need to take care of our baby. Don't worry. (A few seconds pause...) What did you do without me when I was a baby? You didn't have anyone to help you?!" :)
One positive is that we always know what Bentley is thinking. ALWAYS. Which I love and I cherish. And so since I've been pregnant we have been able to follow along with his trail of thoughts, questions, observations, and realizations about the baby, in real time. So I started writing them down. There will likely be a round 2 to this post at the end of my pregnancy, perhaps a round 3 once baby boy is born. They are in chronological order, so they get better as you go!
First morning after we told him, B's first words were "mom how big is the baby now??" And the same question an hour later...it's going to be a long wait for him!
First day after we told him, at pre-school: "Guess what, my mom has a baby in her tummy!" To everyone he sees. Good thing we waited to get through the first trimester to tell him.
"Don't worry mom, I can change the baby's diapers, I saw Moses and Elijah's mommy changing their diapers so I know how now."
"Dad, we need to build a wall in the play room so we can separate my toys and the baby's toys. I don't think he knows how to play with my toys and he might break them."
A few weeks later...Still talking about that wall in the play room to separate his and the baby's toys...he will be in for a rude yet necessary awakening when it's time to share his parents, his house, others' attention, his life with this baby!
"Mom, can I learn how to change the baby's diapers and that will be one of my new chores?" Oh yes you can sweet boy!
"Mom, is that a maternal clothes?" he asks me many mornings after I am dressed for work.
"Mom, for Christmas I am going to get you some maternal clothes so your belly won't be tight and my baby won't get hurt." Perhaps I should take note that my regular clothes are getting too tight?
"Mom, why are these bigger (pointing to my chest)? I thought the baby was growing in your stomach?" No response but a stunned, blank stare from me.
B, distraught for a third day in a row: "Mom, its just not fair that girls have 4 private parts and boys have only 2." (Note: Bottom counts as 1 and chest as 2 for those trying to do the math.) Michel's response when I asked him how I should respond: "One day he will appreciate the extra 2 private parts girls have."
"Those (referring to my boobs, again) should not be a private part if that is where milk comes out for the baby! Eww!" I had to explain the feeding process since B was insisting on being the first one to feed the baby using his old Cars sippy cup.
Another "It's not fair!"..."That is not fair at all that boys cannot be pregnant. I will never have a baby but girls can." Yep saving this for wedding material. No sympathy for you on this one, dude.
After explaining what the feeding process will be for the new baby (for the tenth time, Bentley is very intrigued by it all)..."Oh, so you are going to be like the baby's sippy cup!"
"Mom how come the baby is naked in your tummy? Eewww that's gross."
B: "Mom why does your tummy hurt, do you have too much milk in there?"
Me: No, sometimes when you are pregnant you don't feel well.
B: "Oh so you don't have milk in there?"
Me: No, my body makes milk for the baby after he is born.
B: "Oh. Well, then why are your chest-es growing so big already?"
Should we be concerned by his chest obsession at the age of 4? Goodness gracious. Michel says no, he is a dude.
Naming the reindeer around Christmas time.."Dasher, Dancer, Cancer..."
A few days before Christmas: "Mom I'm going to walk next to you and take you around the house since we don't have a donkey for you to ride on."
Bentley's suggestions on possible baby brother names include Pee and Poop. We will no longer be seeking his input.
"When I am 8 and my baby brother is 4 can we share a room?" He likes figuring out how old the baby will be when he is a certain age.
"Mom, I will be helping you with everything you need to take care of our baby. Don't worry. (A few seconds pause...) What did you do without me when I was a baby? You didn't have anyone to help you?!" :)
