Currents: Henry

Current books: Some of his favorites are his "When I Feel" books.  There is a whole series of when I feel jealous, angry, sad, scared, etc.  They are very helpful to Henry who, like his mama, tends to have some very big old feelings to deal with.  He really love the Llama series.  Splat the Cat never fails to disappoint.  And he's starting to get into the Mac and Cheese books too.  

Current TV and movies: He loves to watch Peppa Pig, Tom and Jerry, Spongebob, America's Funniest Videos, The Pioneer Woman (a cooking show), and his favorite movies are on repeat a lot -- all the Toy Story series and the Despicable Me series. 

Current pleasures: His DS.  Playing Minion Rush on my phone.  Anything screen-related.  Pretending his dad is a bucking bronco and getting thrown off.  Playing Quidditch, wrestling, and football with his brother in the basement.  Pretending to be anything and everything: Scabbers the rat from Harry Potter, Hagrid, all sorts of animals, everyone from our family, all sorts of superheroes and made up creatures too.  Swimming lessons!  LOVES them. 

Current toys: His toy story toys are and have been for some time on constant standby.  Buzz, Woody, Jessie, Ham, Slinky Dog, Bullseye and Lotso.  They're almost always out and scattered around the house. Anything that looks like it could plausibly be a magic wand.  His minions from Despicable Me.  Books. 

Current songs: Common requests include Gangnam Style, You've Got a Friend in Me, Black Horse and the Cherry Tree, Eye of the Tiger and ... oh dear, one highly inappropriate one whose name I can't remember but talks about how "my girl got a big old booty. Yeah?  Your girl got a little old booty.  Oh no!"

Current outfit: Today he is wearing his jeans with the top snap undone as he does not like to do snaps and has no intention to learn them.  His Green Eggs and Ham t-shirt and his very worn out cowboy boots. 

Current things to eat and drink:  He loves hot chocolate, but only once its cooled.  And he loves milk.  To eat, he favors fruit, graham crackers, and fruit snacks.  Truth be told, if he had his way he'd be like Buddy the Elf and make his main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup. 

Current wish list: His own magic wand like Sam's, to be able to play outside and for winter to go away, to not have to wipe his bottom post bathroom trip.

Current triumph: Learning to write his name and other letters. Telling funny jokes and knowing how to make people laugh.  Brushing his own hair.  Oh man.  He dumps big handfuls of water on his head and then combs it straight down and as flat as he can make it.  It looks SO WEIRD, but he is over the top proud of doing it himself.  Zipping his own coat on occasion.  Buckling his own seat belt on occasion.  Wiping his own bottom on occasion. 

Current bane of his existence: Limited screen time.  The boy has a total meltdown every time I tell him he's done with screens.  TO.TAL. MELT.DOWN. He is also not a fan of dinner.  He rarely eats any of it.  And Craig and I are constantly strategizing the best way to deal with his appalling dinner time habits.  All of the things mentioned above that he can occasionally do -- zippers, snaps, buckles, butt wiping.  I think they bother him so much because he has done them before but they are all still challenging and how irritating.  I mean, once we know how to do something, it seems logical that we should be able to do them from here on out with ease, but that is not the case.  

Current crush: This girl from his class who is as naughty as they come.  Oooooooh, that girl.  Henry adores her. 

Current indulgence: Every morning, Henry is the first one in my room.  He climbs into my bed with me and we snuggle for a good 20 minutes, just he and I before I finally give in to getting Mr. Squawky Gus out of bed and I drag Sam away from his radio to get ready.  It is an awesome time for us to just snuggle and  be sleepy and still together.  Usually during the solo snuggles, Henry asks me if I pooped because I have morning breath.  And he is apparently very offended by my morning breath.  I never comment on his odious morning breath, however.  

Henry has a high level of need for snuggles.  He needs to be held and carried and rocked a lot and seeks out as many opportunities for it as he can find during the day.  It's harder for me to do meaningful snuggles during the bustle of the day, but every morning he gets 20 minutes of solo snuggles. And every night, when Craig tucks him into bed he gets a good 10 more minutes of snuggles and back rubbing.  Craig and him say prayers and then Craig lists off all the things he loves about Henry while he rubs his back.  So, while I do not actually considering snuggling my kids to be indulging them,  I think this is the time when Henry probably feels most special because the attention is not split and the hugs are not short or rushed and there is nothing else going on.  And that part of it is definitely indulgent in this wackadoodle house we have going on right now. 

Current excitement: That summer is coming and soon we will be able to swim in a pool like every day and just go outside to play play play all the time.  Everyone keeps telling me how kids don't go outside to play anymore.  They apparently have not met Henry.  That his birthday is coming.  We talk a lot about what he might possibly like for his birthday.  Which is actually still ages away.  Days when Papa picks him up from school and they go to McDonald's and watch shows together.  Sometimes Papa leaves things on his pillow too -- like once a candy that tasted like medicine (it was a lifesaver) and once a dollar bill.   Any day when Craig doesn't have to work is a cause for celebration in this house.  These boys adore their daddy.  As they should.