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Six Years Old

On the 29th of March, Rocco turned six years old.   At the time I was in the hospital.  I delivered Maverick on the 26th and had some complications.  Thankfully Carolyn, my mother-in-law, and Jason did a good job of seeing to it that Rocco's life resumed to as normal as could be under the circumstances.  He didn't even miss school that week.  Jason picked him up early the afternoon that his brother was born, but his schedule was not interupted that much.  Thursday, the day of his birthday, Carolyn even took chocolate chip cookies and some Capri Sun (Rocco's request)

to his class so that he could have a birthday party with his classmates.  Most afternoon's Rocco would come to the hospital to see me and his brother.  Boy was it good therapy to see that boy of mine! 

He would kiss on his brother's head and pat on him.  Towards the end of the week he even got up in the bed with me.  Having my two boys did my heart a whole lot of good even when I felt so very sick. 

Before I went into the hospital on Monday the 26th, we had Rocco's birthday party at our house on Saturday the 24th.  Jason did a great job preparing the garage, yard, and house for the event.  I was about 39 weeks pregnant at the time and not much help.  It turned out to be a successful party with plenty of family and friends from school.  Rocco chose a Power Rangers themed party.  

And here's one of the last pictures we took together as just a family of three.  Maverick was still in the womb (two days before he would be born).

Before I close, I had to write about a few things Rocco is doing lately.

1)  He is an excellent speller!  And he doesn't just spell words...he spells them backwards.  "L-O-O-H-C-S" Most kindergartners can't even spell SCHOOL forwards! 

2)  And speaking of spelling, he is always asking me, "Hey, mommy.  How do your 4th and 5th graders spell ......"  then he'll give me a certain word.  I've bragged on his spelling so much and told him time after time that even my 4th and 5th graders can't spell such words.  I'll usually spell the word wrong when he asks me that question, then he'll go, "Huh?  That's not right." Then, he will spell it correctly.

3)  He is the only boy in his class who has read enough library books and passed the tests to have earned 10 AR points.  This was a major accomplishment.  I guess he read over 20 books to do this and he can only take one book test a week.  We've been working on this for a while!

4)  Rocco is the most ticklish kid I know.  He's started getting me back lately though in my tickle spot on my neck.  He thinks it is so funny.

5)  He is quite the trickster lately.  But before he does something he usually lets you know something is up.  He'll ask, "Can I play a trick on you?"  Then, he'll go hide or act like he doesn't have something behind his back.  When April 1st came around we kept on hearing, "April Fools!"  This went on throughout most of April...not just on the first.

6)  His favorite video game is now Mario Baseball on the Wii.  He could play it for hours if we let him. He's so good he can win like 60 to 0.



We Were On Good Morning America!

So we submitted this video clip to GMA.  The idea was to show something about your life in just three words.  I was able to submit both of my miracles...and America saw it this morning on television.  To God be the glory for the great things He has done!

Rocco's Box Castle

Here's what we did with all of the boxes that the strollers, car seat, pack and play, and swing came in.  Rocco and I had lots of fun playing Power Rangers with this Shiba Castle.

5 Years 11 Months Old

My little boy is almost six, and I can't believe it.  So what's going on in Rocco's life lately?  He's doing really well in school.  Jason still gets him ready for school in the morning, and he decorates his apple toaster strudel like a football field.  Then, when they get to school he carries him in on his shoulders. 

He continues to do well in school - making A's on his spelling tests, making 100's and/or not missing more than one question on his AR tests, and hoping to be the leader.  That's right.  Every day I pick him up from school (now that I'm on rest with my pregnancy), the first thing he tells me is who the leader was.  Mrs. Bond randomly picks out a popsicle stick with a student's name on it to be the day's leader.  There are about 19 kids in his class, so once he's the leader he has to wait for everyone else to be the leader before it could possibly be his turn again.  And on the day when he is chosen as the leader, it's like the best day ever!  Rocco enjoys being a car rider.  I guess it beats having to stay at school an extra 30 minutes in my classroom when I was working.

The other day he experienced his first breakup.  It came a few days after Valentines Day.  Riley, his girlfriend since preK, told him that he wasn't her boyfriend anymore.  As he's telling me this from his car seat, my heart just broke.  I looked at him , and he didn't seem to be bothered by it at all.  "Well, who needs her?" was my response, hoping he'd see it was alright.  He told me that he didn't want a girlfriend anyway...and that was that.  Riley had 3 boyfriends (Rocco, Will Cox, and Hayes Gunn).  This was well known; Rocco would often tell me.  At the school Valentine's party a few days prior, Hayes showered her with tons of gifts.  Rocco gave her nothing except a Power Rangers card, which he gave to everyone in his class.  After the break up he decided he didn't want any girls invited to his birthday party...boys only! (Below is a pic of Rocco and Riley.  Riley is holding the bear Hayes gave her.)

We have been so blessed to have a son who is so well behaved and respectful.  The other day, though, we had our first experience this school year with a behavior problem.  As soon as I picked him up he spilled it out.  He wasn't even buckled in his seat when he blurted out, "Mom, it's okay but I got my first minus today.  It was only one though."  I asked him what he did, and he said that he didn't remember.  Well, I knew good and well that he knew.  I opened up his agenda to find that he had been sliding on his knees during PE in the gym.  I told him I was disappointed but that he needed to learn from that and not do it again.  I reminded him that if he got more than 3 minuses he would not be able to go to the good behavior party.  And that's about all we said.  When Jason got home a few hours later, I asked Rocco if he wanted to tell his daddy something.  "No."  Well, I told Jason and we just briefly reminded him to not let it happen again.  That was it.  I couldn't scold him too hard.  For one he was so honest in letting me know and two, sliding on his knees?  There are things lots worse in this world.  Of course, I didn't let him know I thought that.  The bottom line is that he was doing something he was not supposed to, and we ultimately want him to be respectful of his teachers.   A week later I picked up Rocco from school.  "I've got some good news/surprise in my book bag, mom! I got a ticket to the good behavior party!"  I was so proud, and we high fived each other.

He continues to be very sweet with my belly.  He rubs on it and loves on his brother, he even told me the other day, "I can't wait 5 more weeks.  I want my brother now!"  One day he put his hand on my neck and felt my pulse.  "Hey mom!  I feel him kicking!"  I had to explain to him that he was really feeling my heartbeat.  I'm glad he enjoys feeling for the baby.  That makes me feel good because how he reacts to this new baby has been my biggest concern.  I don't want him to feel left out, second best, unloved, forgotten, etc.  That's why I often remind him how much he means to me. "Rocco, you are my first baby.  Maverick (his brother) is the second.  I had you first, and you are the one who made me a mommy.  You are so very special to me, and no matter how many babies I have I will always love you.  I'm crazy about you.  We're tight."  He kids back with me.  "That's not right," he'll say.  He'll point to himself and say, "Second," and point to my belly and say, "First."  We go back and forth laughing at who is right.  Instead of focusing on how "lucky" he is to be a big brother, I've told him that this baby is so blessed to have him as a brother.  I've bragged on him and told him how much Maverick is going to look up to him.  

I've had 3 baby showers thus far and Rocco has helped me open presents at all of them.  Thankfully, people have been thoughtful enough to give him presents, too.  He really liked that! It was good that not all of the attention was on the baby. 

I've had a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions.  One day I was hurting with one.  I told him I was having a contraction. "Mom, a contraction is like i-s-n-'-t," he explained to me. 

Here's a quick list of things he likes:

1) watching Power Rangers Samurai on TV

2) playing with Power Rangers toys, especially in the tub

3) being called into the "Boxing Ring" and fighting imaginary nighloks with his sword

4)  chips, gum, crunchy (bacon, bread, etc)

5) American Idol tv show(he wants to be one of the judges when he grows up)

And so the next time I take his picture in this blue chair, he may not be an only child. 

5 Years 10 Months Old

Rocco is doing great in school this year.  Mrs. Bond is currently working with his class on money and how much each coin is worth.  He quickly picked it up.  He loves learning and really enjoys school.  On the way home from school (he often comes to my classroom at 3pm and we'll go home together at 3:30), we were talking about coins.  I was asking him how many pennies were in a quarter, how much a dime was worth, etc.  When I felt like I had asked him just about every combination that he could figure out, he asked me, "But mom...what about Mexican pesos?"  That boy is something. 

One afternoon he came in the bedroom asking me to tell him everything I knew about Abraham Lincoln.  Since they were learning about pennies, Mrs. Bond had taught the class about him.  I told him as much as I could think of...the Civil War, the Gettysburg Address, how I had gone to LMU University which was named after him, etc.  After some hesitation, I decided to tell him that a really mean man killed that president.  His eyes lit up and as he pointed his finger in the air and proclaimed, "John Wilkes Booth!"  I nearly fell in the floor.   And then a few days later he was using the word assassinated and pronouncing it correctly.  He is such a little sponge for knowledge!

Rocco also enjoys writing stories.  He is only in kindergarten, but he has learned how to spell many words, and those he doesn't know he will sound out.  On his spelling tests he has made perfect scores and even earned extra points for the bonus words.  He also knows how to capitalize proper nouns/beginning of sentences and punctuate.  The other night at church he wrote me a story.  It said, "Rocco    I love my mom.  I love my cat.  Day is Suday.  2012  tomoro is Monday" 

At night he plays a new computer game we got him for Christmas.  It was just $3 at TJ Maxx and worth every dollar.  The CD goes into the computer and lets him play all kinds of learning games on the kindergarten level.  It is by Jump Start.  His little character is a dinosaur, and he walks that little character all around the Jump Start world and earns gems by playing games with patterns, numbers, calendars, and words. 

One of his favorite things he loves to do is for me to "call him into the ring" to fight different Nighloks.  He takes his soft, sponge sword and beats up on these imaginary foes as if he is Kevin the blue Power Ranger. 

5 Years 9 Months Old

The little boy who used to be just into cars and trains is now into super heroes.  That's what he asked Santa for this year.  He is really into good guys/bad guys.  On TV, he's been watching the Power Rangers; he even has the action figures, which his grandnana bought him for Christmas.  Jason and I also bought him a few.  Now he has the green, blue, red, and golden Power Rangers.  He'll play with them and make kicking, punching, fighting sounds.

The little beanie baby next to him in the above picture has a story to go with it.  All of his life, Rocco has never had a stuffed animal.  I'm very allergic to them so we can't have them in the house.  As we were cleaning out and organizing our rooms for the baby boy, Rocco found some old beanie babies that I had collected.  He began playing with them...and even sleeping with them.  Most boys in kindergarten may be over small toy animals, but to Rocco this type of toy is pretty new to him.  His favorite one is Rhino. 

At night when we say our prayers, Rocco rarely wants to pray out loud.  "I'm saying my quietly."  Within a few seconds he'll be finished.  When I asked him if he prayed for anyone he'll sometime's say, "I prayed for the whole world."  When I do get him to say his prayers out loud they are so sweet.  He prays for various people in our family.  Lately, he's prayed for God to give strength to his grandnana and grandpapaw.  They have not been in good health.  How sweet that he remembers them in prayer. 

We're still Mario fans.  That's probably Rocco's favorite way to spend time with me.  He thinks we have to play it every day.