:: 3.5 ::

I think of this kid and seriously just chuckle. Ryan is the funniest little kid you'll meet. And he's SO FREAKING ADORABLE most of time. I don't care if he's ready to rip your throat out, sleeping or happy, he just is the cutest thing in the world to watch. The "baby fights" between him and Kinsley are just so, so very cute.

Physical Development

Ryan moved on up to 4T clothes earlier this summer, but some of the pants still are a little loose around the waist. He has been, BY FAR, my easiest kid to potty train so far, and has been fully day trained since February, I think. We're still working on the nighttime part, but for the most part, I just always put on a pull up and am not sweating it yet.

He really enjoys getting his body adjusted when we go to the chiropractor. He gets SO excited to "ride" the table down into position each time lol

He's 45" and 38lbs now. He wears a size 10 toddler shoe and is in the S/M size for night time pullups.

Teething

Ryan now has all his teeth, although for some reason, he still likes to wake up in the night and come crawl in bed with me. He finally had his first real checkup at the dentist this month where he sat for an entire cleaning! It's so nice when they finally stop screaming and clinging to me lol

Sleep Habits

Ryan still naps at least for a short bit most days, but it isn't abnormal (although it's very frustrating) for him to skip a nap.

I can usually count on him to be put down to bed with our usual routine and stay there, basically making him the most compliant bedtime kid of all his siblings. He still wakes most nights around 3am to come crawl in bed with Mama to play with my hair, which isn't usually much of a problem, unless his baby sister has the same idea. That becomes an issue because they both want to be laying next to me, and well...that gets pretty uncomfortable.

Speech Development

Ryan is a little chatterbox, and he's just freaking hilarious most of the time. You can understand probably 98% of what he says too, although he still has issues with his "f"s, which is so cute too. I dread the day he begins to work on it and changes. Right now "shish" (fish), "strosting" (frosting), "singers" (fingers), and so many more...they just brighten my day and make me smile from the inside to hear. His little voice just melts me most of the time.

Eating

Ryan has really turned into quite the snacker these days, which makes me sad. He loves his milk, which he and Kinsley both still take at various times throughout the day in their "kitty cups" (Kinsley coined the term, and it stuck).

He is definitely really fond of "snacks" and will eat most of whatever snack it might be. He is oddly not very overly fond of sweets. If you give him a cookie, there's a good chance that the cookie will sit there with a tiny bite out of it and Cashel or Kendrick will find it and finish it for him. His favorite meal is "cheese and cocks", which means macaroni and cheese and hot dogs. I really hope he never learns to say it right, because it's so adorable when he says it lol

School

This big kid started PRESCHOOL in September! It's crazy to think about how big he is getting. He absolutely LOVES going to school, and would go every day if he could.

Toddler Behaviors and Discipline

Ryan has certainly amped up his tantrums, and the intensity of them leaves bystanders very concerned for his wellfare, I'm sure: Especially when I am extremely nonchallant about them. The thing is, he sounds like he is in horrendous pain or something, but I know there is a slight difference between pain and anger, and about 99.9999% of the time, he's just angry. He no longer gracefully lowers himself onto the floor to kick and scream, but rather throws himself on the ground, and the vast majority of the time, it's because he isn't getting something he wants - ESPECIALLY the ride on tractor of Kendrick's. (The kid is going to be an excellent driver by the time he's 16, right?)

I've been working with ALL the kids on following the 1-2-3 Magic program, and for the most part, it's working alright. For the big boys, it works really well, actually, and I can usually either halt the behavior or they will listen to me to "take 5" almost immediately. If we are in public, they will just ask me where they have to go for their "take 5" time. However, with Ryan, he just likes to count along with me while being deviant and watching me like a hawk, and when he ends up having to take 5, he throws the motherload of all tantrums and refuses to listen when I tell him that he has to be CALM before his 5 minutes starts, so it goes on FOREVER.

I HAVE, however, been trying extremely hard to focus on making sure his needs are met on time, however, to keep the unnecessary tantrums at bay. If he's tired or hungry, I give him a little more slack, especially if I'm an hour late getting him his lunch or supper, or he hasn't had a nap and it's 3pm or something. He's generally a really sweet kid, but he's just a typical tantrummy toddler at this point. I'm very grateful that his behaviors don't seem worse than the typical toddler in light of the hard times his first couple years of life.

Likes

• He still loves Daddy so much and asks when he gets to see him regularly. He actually said the other day that he wished Daddy could live with us in our house. He doesn't remember that Daddy once did, but that was 18 months ago when he was 2, so...
  
• Sucking on those two fingers...ALWAYS. I realized I haven't taken a picture of him doing it lately, though.
• His Family!
  
• Cheering on his big brothers playing ball!
  
• Mama. Always.
  
• "Coloring" with big brothers. It usually consists of him doing this, followed by biting the tips off all the crayons.
  
• Hanging out with his siblings
  
  
  
• Swimming
  
• Brown Bear Brown Bear. Argh. I just really hate it when my kids cling to this one. I grow weary of reading it every.single.night. The repetitiveness makes me feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone.
• Making everyone laugh. Ryan LOVES the spotlight!
  
• Spending time with these guys
  
• "Playing" video games.
  
• Our favorite new park!
  
• Helping Mom in the kitchen.
  
• Celebrating anything that involves cake!
  
• Candy!
  
• The County Fair!
  
• The Vikes...and also wearing clothes that are too small for him lol
  
• The carousel. He asks to ride the one at the mall in Mankato every time we go. This one was at the Zoo in Sioux falls, however.
  
  

Dislikes

• Being told he can't do something.
• Not having things go his way.
• Not being able to physically do things or get places that he wants to do/go.
• Not having his cuppy before bed.
• Not having his cuppy before Jody's.
• Not getting to "go owwwside" with the big kids.
• Any pjs but his "Pawtrolls" or Santa ones.

3 Years 3 Months

It's a catch 22 with kids at this age, if I'm being honest. I mean, they're so freaking adorable that you just wanna scoop them up and breathe them in. But they're honestly so freaking crazy that much of the time you just want to put in ear plugs and lock yourself in your room. The summer is just beginning, but the whining has been a definite thing, and if history repeats itself with Johnson kids at this age, it may be a while before that gets better. But they're so darn cute that it's hard to be mad for long, and this little guy is very, very demanding and vocal about needing Mama snuggles.

But he's bubbly and personable and a friend to everyone, and it's fun to watch him continue to grow.

Physical Development

Ryan moved on up to 4T clothes, even if they look a little big on him. There are a few pairs of pants that we had to put back in storage as they were just falling off his little tiny waist. He's now up to size 12 shoes. He is fully day trained for potty, but still wears a pull up at bedtime, which is usually full by morning. If I'm being honest, he has been by FAR the easiest of my boys to potty train.

Sleep Habits

Ryan takes pretty short naps these days, but he still naps most of the time. He usually takes about 45 minutes to an hour at daycare, and at home on the weekends, we might eek 2 hours out. I definitely prefer the days he doesn't, however, as he goes to bed MUCH easier and tends to end up staying in his own bed on those nights.

The "occasionally" snuggling in my bed thing has become more like a routine these days. If I ever heard or felt him crawl in with me, I'd definitely take him back down to his bed, but I never hear him, so I just wake up to him in bed next to me in the mornings. I'd like to get him back to sleeping through the night and not feeling the urge to come upstairs, but that may be a ways off.

Speech Development

Ryan will talk your ear off all day long. It's exhausting! He loves to talk and talk and talk, and if he isn't talking, he's usually got his fingers in his mouth and playing with either his hair or mine. He talks mostly like a big kid these days, but does still let some baby talk linger, like, "My do it" instead of "I do to it". (Basically, replaces anywhere you would say "I" with "My"). He has begun calling "Moonies" "Movies" now too, which just breaks me :( He's so cute!

Eating

Ryan has been going through a major food strike lately. I mean, he eats for sure, but it's always whatever he feels like eating, and getting him to eat the food I've actually prepared is like pulling teeth. It's exhausting! However...the one thing you KNOW he will ALWAYS eat is a cookie from Hardee's. It HAS to be from Hardee's, though, or he throws a major fit.

He does still love his snacks, though. His favorites are Gogurts and Applesauce pouches, and, as with all my kids, wants a "Kitty cup" (which is a sippy cup with milk in it) regularly.

Toddler Behaviors and Discipline

The whining and tantrums have not really lessened at this point, but it helps to keep busy and distracted when we're able to be outside and finding new adventures. He's just becoming much, much, much more opinionated, which makes it hard when we're trying to cater to the whole family of 5, and not just him. It's a difficult lesson to learn at any age, but especially when most of the time, he doesn't get any say in his schedule.

Likes

• I mean, between Kinsley and Ryan, I am covered in littles all day long most of the time. I don't dare sit down, or I find it extremely difficult to get up lol This kid LOVES his Mama!
  
• Sucking on those two fingers, which is now usually only when he's very tired (morning, before bed) or if he's overwhelmed or scared or needs comfort. With everything we've been going through as a family, it hasn't been a priority of mine to help it stop. He doesn't tend to do it when we're out, just at home or daycare probably (he used to at Jody's)
• Candy! With the Riverfest parade, he was ALL about collecting as much candy as he could.
  
• Roasting marshmallows over a fire.
  
• He is big into Team Umizoomi, Justin Time, Word Party, Incredibles 2 and, really, just in general being in control of the Roku remote lol
• Being "one of the boys". He LOVES his big brothers.
  
• His siblings - Kinsley too :)
  
• Parades! This kid LOVES parades, and has this huge smile on his face the ENTIRE time.
  
• Farming with Grandpa
  
  
• Exploring
  
• Playing at the park. (Also, scaling the walls lol)
  
• People in dress up costumes lol
  

Dislikes

• Not getting to do whatever he feels like doing.
• Not being in charge.
• Not being catered to.
• Cookies that are not from Hardee's
• Being told "no"
• Not getting his turn first for tractor or 4-wheeler rides

:: THREE ::

Physical Development

Well, we've stepped into the 4T realm, and the clothes aren't too big :( We're going to eternally have the issue with his pants falling off, since he has such a tiny waist, but otherwise, he's growing perfectly! At his 3 Year well child check, he was 36lbs and 3'4" (40"), so quite a bit smaller than his big brothers, which seems crazy since he started out so much bigger than him!

Sleep Habits

Ryan still naps most days, but the naps are getting shorter and shorter, and I was just not prepared mentally for that. Also, on those days he naps, bedtime tends to get stretched out a bit.

He's still not a huge fan of bedtime, which is frustrating, but once we start reading, he snuggles right in. Every night, after 3 books, 2 songs and a prayer, he says, "I'm just going to play with your hair for a little bit, okay?" in the most adorable voice. I wish I could capture it, but when I've tried, he won't say it. It's so cute.

Speech Development

So.many.words. Oh my goodness does he like to hear himself talk. He's funny and very articulate and uses these words I don't even know where he could have gotten them from. He likes to uses phrases like "seriously, guys" or "oh my goodness" or "that's what I'm talking about", and I have no idea where he got them from. #HeGotThemFromHisMama

Eating

Ugh, the milk and snacks dilema continues. I'm so freaking tired of him asking for milk and snacks. I simply don't have the stamina or energy to enforce the "you must eat supper" thing, so I just try to keep all the possible snacks in the house healthier, like fruit or veggies or beef sticks or cheese or maybe an applesauce pouch or something, so that when he DOES snack, he's at least getting something from at least one of the food groups.

He is really getting a heck of a lot better about not being so messy while he eats. He still gets it on his face, but he otherwise keeps it mostly on his plate, which is SO helpful!

Toddler Behaviors and Discipline

We're delving straight into the world of the threenager, and while I am prepared, I'm not sure I'm prepared enough. ::sigh:: This is the age where all those rules you thought you had for all these imaginary kids goes out the window half the time.

Discipline is HARD at three, because it's so freaking constant. And they have SO much energy. And they're SO determined to break all the rules they used to follow. Three is hard. And hilarious too. And adorable. But also so, so very hard.

Likes

• Mama is where it's at for this kid. He wants to be touching me at ALL TIMES. The second I sit down (and even sometimes if I'm not sitting down), he'll be all over my back, climbing and acting all crazy like, playing with my hair and sucking on those two fingers.
  
• Speaking of finger sucking...thinking this is getting worse. It definitely seems to peak when I'm more stressed out, and well, let's just say I've been stressed out a lot more lately.
  
• Sissypants Jo Johnson - she is, hands' down, his favorite person. These two are fire and ice, but also just the most adorable in the world. They are together probably 95% of the day, and as of late, they've been sharing a room (until we can get the carpet replaced in her bedroom)
  
• School! He started his preschool prep program on his 3rd birthday, and he had an AWESOME time!
  
• His best pal at daycare! They are both going to school, along with another of his favorite friends (who isn't fond of taking pictures haha - we tried!)
  
• Snow! The snow this winter has been EPIC! It's melting now and causing flooding in ALL the places. Entire roads are washed out and all that. But the snow before melting... that was pretty intense! The kids loved playing out in it!
  
• Being 3! He talks about it a LOT. He says he's officially a "big kid" now, and I'd have to agree!
  
• Celebrating! And his siblings ♥
  
• Puddles! Something tells me this spring is going to be EPIC.
  

Dislikes

• Not getting to watch a "moonie [movie]" when he wants to.
• Not getting a "milky cup" fast enough. This kid is IMPATIENT!
• Having to go to bed.
• Mama taking to long to get him a snack.
• Anyone accusing him of NOT being a big kid.