Ilan really hates putting on cold weather clothes. He hates sweaters and sweatshirts, winter jackets and coats, and he especially hates hats and mittens. Every morning getting dressed is a fight. One morning, through his tears, he answered the question I always ask, which is something like, "why are you so upset about this jacket that keeps you warm?"
He said, "Mommy I wouldn't cry if I had a red jacket."
Oh. Well this was news. Because of various hand-me-downs, Lani has 3 winter jackets, one brown, one black, and one green. The last thing he needed was another one. So I put some red tape on his green jacket, which at the time was the least offensive of his jackets. But that just made him more pissed. "This isn't the red jacket that I wanted!" he screamed at me. And he unzipped it and shook it off even more often than usual on our commute.
A few weeks later Lani was still crying for a red jacket. He cried and fussed every time we put on his jacket, which was multiple times a day. I found a red jacket on sale for $25 on the Lands End website. I bought it.
When the red jacket came I set it aside, I wanted to save it for his birthday, or for Hannukah at least. But after one particular intense crying fit, I couldn't wait any longer. The next morning, when it was time to put on jackets and go to school, I presented Lani with his brand new red coat.
Lani looked at the coat, confused, and burst into fresh tears. "Mommy, red is not my favorite color anymore!" he wailed. "My favorite color is yellow!"
Lani Moo, you change your mind a lot. You'll ask to play with playdough, and by the time I clear off the table and get down the playdough and all the playdough tools, you are no longer interested. You ask me to play trains with you, but on our way downstairs we pass a pile of books that you ask me to read instead. You ask for a pretzel snack, but before I can put some pretzels in a bowl you've decided instead to eat a banana, or that you'd rather whine for watermelon.
You like to walk a funny walk, where you walk pigeon toed or cross your legs or just kick out your feet silly. If there are any rocks or bricks nearby, as there often are, piled up around planters and trees, you have to climb them, or at the very least step on them all. You love walking and running over uneven surfaces.
Your favorite book is "Room on the Broom" and you love when the dragon comes. I love watching you anticipate the arrival of the dragon. When we read you are always focused on the emotions of the characters, you want to know if someone is happy or sad, or worried, or surprised, and we have a lot of conversations about what the characters are feeling and why they are feeling that way.
Like your big brother, you like trains and cars, and love riding your scooter. Roan has a red one and you have a green one, but you often switch scooters, depending on which is your favorite color at the moment. Roan pumps with his left leg and you pump with your right. You like to stick your right leg out straight behind you, or out to the side, or sometimes, if you are feeling really silly or reckless, you will hook your leg over the handlebar.
You are very cuddly and snuggly. You will curl up with me or Daddy on our couch or in bed and lay quietly. I love these quiet moments. Daddy says I baby you more than I should - at dinner I'll let you sit on my lap and will sometimes spoon feed you when you say with a sly grin, "Mommy I need help eating." To be clear, you don't really need help eating. You can also put your own shoes on and take them off, but most of the time I do it for you, just to have a reason to sit your warm little body on my lap.
Happy 3rd Birthday, Lani Moo.
