Tom

With all that has happened in our life recently, it is probably time to acknowledge our "other" masterpiece.

Tom is 4 years old.
From the time he was 5 weeks old he has had a sister with a medical condition.
So he can be forgiven for making sure everyone knows when he is around.

From the moment Tom turned 10 months old be became demanding.
He was always the cuddly and cute boy that a mother could never put down because he would SCREAM.
I always had to be in his eyesight.

To say Tom has a strong personality is an understatement.
Even before he began to talk he had character and knew what he wanted.

When he was 13 months old I decided it was time to stop the breastfeeding. He was still waking up once a night for a feed and I thought I had done my duty. I needed sleep.
On the first night he woke, I sat in his room and explained "No more. Go back to sleep".
I will never forget him walking over to his book shelf (yes it is low!) and starting to throw books at me.
Yes. Not just one. Lots.
But I won. Breastfeeding stopped, especially after that behaviour !!

Tom was also half the reason I gave up Kindergarten teaching.
Amelia was starting school and I could not work out school drop off and pick up on my work days. Tom was 2 1/2 years old and was still crying everytime I left him with mum and dad. His temper was also escalating so I just wanted to be with my kids full time and focus only on their needs.

We have come a long way with Tom in the last 2 years. He is maturing and becoming more capable of controlling his feelings and I am really enjoying this last year with him before he goes to school.

Everyday is so entertaining with him.
Last week he was angry and went into his room and shut the door.
Five minutes later he came out and said "Ok. I have had my meltdown. Can you give me that chocolate NOW". Ummmm NO!
Walking through the shops yesterday he wanted everything he saw.
After 1 hour of shopping he very calmly muttered "You are making me very angry". Just like I would say to him!

His speech therapist once said, (yes it is hard to believe he needed help learning to talk!), how much she enjoyed our appointments. She believed one day, in 20 years time, that she would see his name up in lights somewhere. Megan spent many of our sessions laughing.

But this morning laying in bed, he counted every number to 100. Then he counted by 100's to 1000 and then said "I was born to be rich". I sat up and said "what does rich mean?". He said "that i am going to make a lot of money".

Tom has the same enthusiasm for life and friendliness that Amelia has.
I may be exhausted at the end of everyday and get overwhelmed by him sometimes. But he is also fascinating to talk to and watch.
I cannot imagine not having Tom in our lives.
I cannot wait to see what this child becomes.