I interviewed Reece on his 3rd birthday. Here are his answers. I hope to do this same interview with him every year from here on out. It will be fun to compare answers as he grows up!
Nicknames Reecer, Reecer-Boy, Reece-Reece
What is your name? R-E-C-E
REECE! My name is Reece Michael Beck
How old are you? Free
(Three)
What is your favorite
color? Red
What is your favorite
animal? Crocodile
What is your favorite
book? My
ABCDEFG Book (Dr. Seuss’ ABCs)
What is your favorite
TV show? Little Einsteins, Super WHY!, & Tinga-Tinga Tales from Africa
What is your favorite
movie? Cars
What is your favorite
song? Sang the ABC Song to me
What is your favorite
food? Apple
slices, cheese, and barbecue sauce
What is your favorite
drink? Water,
apple juice, and chocolate milk
What is your favorite
snack? Red
chips (Nacho Cheese Doritos)
What is your favorite
game? Hi-Ho-Cherry-O,
Candyland, Hide-n-Seek, Red Light-Green Light, and playing rough!
What is your favorite
toy? My
grabnabber (claw)
Who is your best
friend? “You’re
my Best Friend Forever, Mom”
What is your favorite
thing to do? Swing, play, do things, work with tools
What is your favorite
thing to do outside? Jump and slide super fast!
Where is your favorite
place to go? The park and the library
What is your favorite
restaurant? Our house
Where do you want to
go on vacation? To the park
What do you want to be
when you grow up? To fix things at a
construction site
What makes you happy? Smiles
What makes you sad? It
looks like this: made a sad, frown face
What did you do on your birthday? Opened presents and played
at the park
Reece is three... THREE! I can't believe it. I think up until now we have been waiting for this age. Waiting for Reece to be independent and interactive. Waiting to see his personality develop. Three years of waiting, and now that we are here I want to go back! Time is going by way too fast, and Reece has already grown up into all the wonderful things I was waiting for. I can't wait to see what the next three years bring.
Reece's Three Year Highlights:
-Reece was an excellent patient for Dr. Petrovich at his three-year check-up. He was attentive, answered all of her questions, and did everything she asked. He was excited to ask her about her tools and what they did. His favorite was the otoscope. Dr. P let him use it, as well as her stethoscope. He was thrilled! Here are his stats:
Weight: 33 pounds, 2 ounces - 62%
Height: 38 inches - 58%
-Reece knows all common colors, including the light and dark versions of colors, like light blue and dark blue. He is definitely not color blind! He also knows a lot of shapes: circle, square, rectangle, triangle, trapezoid, pentagon, octagon, diamond/rhombus, star, crescent/moon, and parallelogram.
-Reece can say his ABCs and count to 20 with ease. He can also count backward from ten to zero and by tens to 100. He knows some of the letter sounds, but letter-sound recognition hasn't fully clicked yet. Yesterday while looking at flashcards he said, "There's an A! Aah, aah, crocodile!." He saw the alligator, but didn't connect that the alligator was there because it starts with A. Reece knows the days of the week and sings the song complete with a tongue-click at the end (the best part!). We are working on the months of the year right now.
-Reece is partly potty trained. He will pee on the potty when transitioning from jammies to clothes, when getting ready to get in the bath, anytime we ask him to, or when he feels like having a Starburst jelly bean (his reward), but he does not initiate it yet. His underwear stay dry, so he is 'holding it" but he has yet to take charge. He just learned how to pee standing (just like Dad!) and is really excited about it, so I'm hoping that helps. He will always poop in his pull-up or underwear and then tries to avoid us. When we ask him if he's poopy, he will almost always say no. We are trying not to pressure him because Reece does not thrive under pressure (even with praise). He just doesn't like the attention. He is slowly figuring it out on his own, and I know he will be fine by the time preschool starts in the Fall.
-For over a week Reece did not take a nap. We tried "Quiet Time" and while he actually did play quietly in bed, he was tired and loopy by 5pm. Reece will fall asleep if I lay with him, so I am now spending ten or so minutes with him so he will settle and fall asleep. I never thought I would do this, but it's nice because I get a short rest in the afternoon, too. Even though he is in a bed now and can get out whenever he wants to, he still sits and calls for us in the morning and after his nap. He still sleeps with Ruff-Ruff and uses him for comfort when he is upset.
-Reece loves to pray. He will wait to eat until we are all seated for dinner, and then announce that we need to say
Grace. He will then reach out for our hands and bow his head. If we ask him to pray he will say something like, "Thank you for the food, God. AMEN!" We were at the Coronado Brewing Company recently with the Woodalls, and he orchestrated everything by saying, "Hey, we need to say
Grace guys!" He blessed the food for all of us, well, he thanked God for the chicken nuggets, barbecue sauce, and french fries. Aaron and I exchanged a proud glance and then looked to Reece who was smiling at all of us as he said
Amen. He was proud of us too! Before bed Reece also says his "Night-Night Prayer" (Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep). He always prays with his eyes squinted shut and with a smile on his face.
-Reece is becoming more and more social. A boy was playing with his skid steer at the park, and we needed to leave. Instead of asking me to get it (like he usually does) he went over to him and said, "Hi, my name is Reece and I need to leave, so can I please have my skid steer?" The boy looked at him, and then just kept playing. The boy's mom was paying attention, so she helped her son hand over the skid steer. Reece walked away satisfied. I was so proud of him! When he sees his friends he likes to introduce himself and then ask them their name (even though he already knows). He also started the 3-5 year old Sunday School class at church this month. He is the youngest one in there and sitting and listening is new to him. The teachers all have said that he is doing great for his age. He leaves every Sunday bouncing and smiling and singing the songs they sang. He tells us he misses the toys in the two-year old class though.
-Reece loves to jump, especially off of things. He keeps trying things that are higher and higher, and I love to see his adventurous side. When boys visit our house (especially Jeffrey) Reece's boy-side comes out. They wrestle dangerously and jump off of the furniture. I didn't do this growing up, so I let him do it (within reason) because it seems so natural... and we don't have a back-yard to send them out to!
-Reece is going to love preschool! He asks if he can go to school often and loves to do "school art projects" at home. Reece is very independent when it comes to instruction. When I try to sit down intentionally with him he usually fights my instruction. For example, I have tried numerous times to show him how to hold a pen properly. He refuses to do it. He is such a good patient at the doctor and dentist that I have hope he will listen to his teachers!
-Here are a few (almost) words Reece says that bring a smile to my face: lellow, someping, piggybank ride, gramola bar, mine for my "Now I know
mine ABCs,...That's
mine hat!"
-A few other things he says:
Did you fall, Reece? "Yes, I sure did!"
You need to eat your chicken, Reece. "Sure thing, Dad!" "Okay then."
You have two more minutes to play in the sandbox. "No Mom, one, two, three, four, FIVE more minutes! (It's too cute to say no to.)
Come on, Reece. "Okay, I'm coming on!"
When he is being disciplined: "Stop telling me that, Mom, that's not a nice thing to say."
When he is being praised: "Thank you for telling me that, Dad!"
"I very love you!"
-Reece is definitely a Mama's boy. When he is hurt or sad he wants me. He will stay with Dad for a short time, but he prefers Mom. He takes very good care of me too. While laying in bed together one day I had a coughing attack and he reached over and rubbed my cheek and said, "It's going to be okay, Mom. If you need help just ask me and I'll help you. Okay Mom? I love you, Mom."
-While Reece is sweet most of the time he definitely has a sassy side. He finds himself in "Time Out' often due to talking back to us. A classic example of his defiance: Mom: "Reece, you need eat your banana before you are excused." Reece: "No, YOU need to eat your banana, Mama!" (said with a furrowed brow and lots of attitude). When he gets frustrated and/or upset it usually takes him a few minutes to calm down and become rational again. During these few minutes he is stubborn and seeks lots of negative attention by throwing things or screaming. In a flash sweet Reece will reappear, and he will sit back down with a smile, eat his banana, and then say, "I love you, Mom. This banana is delicious!"
-Reece continues to be very inquisitive, especially when it comes to technology and the mechanics of things. He disassembled his crib and reassembled it into a toddler bed with a little help from us. He was so proud! When we are out and about he asks what all the buttons he sees are for and wants to know what will happen if he pushes them. He has been very interested in signs lately and will ask what they say, what they mean, and what they are telling us to/not to do (especially when we are driving). It's fun to step back and watch him experiment with the cause and effect of things. He also likes to ask what things do. For example, "What does an oven do?" "What does a remote control do?" etc. and wants a detailed answer. If you answer, "A remote control turns the TV on." He will then ask, "And then what does it do?" or "What does it do next?" He will ask these questions until we stop answering.
-Reece LOVES tech. We definitely have to manage his technology time. From the TV to the iPhone to the computer he almost always uses up all of his time, and then begs for more. He usually spends time on the computer on StarFall or ABCMouse. He enjoys puzzles, counting games, or ABC apps on iPhone, and he has shows galore to choose from on Netflix.
-Reece loves to cook with us and will often wake up in the morning and ask, "What are we cooking today? What ingredients do we need?" Aaron loves to cook and enjoys teaching Reece all about the tools and ingredients.
-You're fascinated by non-toys: the coffee maker, computer keyboard, mouse, toaster oven, DVD player, etc.
-Reece is figuring out the difference between fantasy and reality. Recently, Aaron asked Reece if he wanted to play with his car transporter on our bed (at 6am while Elle was still sleeping). Reece responded, "No, Dad. Beds are for sleeping, not for playing! Silly Dad!" When the Little Einsteins ask their audience to clap or raise their arms to help Rocket fly Reece says, "Don't do it because they aren't real and we are just supposed to watch them." When Elle and I do it anyway, Reece laughs and says, "You guys are so silly!" When we play music and dance, Reece will ask us all to stop and just listen because music is only for listening to. Silly Reece!
-Elle loves Reece, and Reece loves Elle! He likes to, as he puts it, "Make Elle happy." Elle teases Reece a lot, and he usually tolerates it, but when he doesn't he will lower his head and tackle her. She usually laughs until she gets hurt. He's lucky she is so strong! When Elle is put into "Time-Out" Reece will stand a few feet away from her and say, "It's going to be okay, Elle." He is her protector when playing with friends or at the park, especially in the sand-box. If a kid takes a toy from her, Reece will retrieve it for her and ask, "Are you okay, Elle?"
Happy THIRD Birthday, ReecerBoy!
We absolutely love you and everything you have become!
On your 3rd birthday...
We put birthday balloons in your bed bright and early. You threw them all out, and then put them in and jumped back in bed! We took a morning walk to the park with your birthday visitors, Papa and Nana. We sang Happy Birthday to you over a plate of Oreos. You asked us to do it again and again. Three birthday songs for three years!
Here are a few more notes I came across on my phone...
-Some fun things you've said lately:
-Oh mine goodness!
-I cry for mama-on my face (showing me your tears)
-Cool Mom (after I disciplined you)
-I'm Reece Michael Beck, and you're Reece Michael Mommy!
-Slow down, Dude! (when crossing Orange Avenue at the crosswalk)
-I'm so proud of you, Dad (for taping his helicopter back together)
-A-Aah, Aah, crocodile! (almost!)
-There's something in there mom (diaper)
-Spatulas don't spank, spatulas stir
-You're hurting my ears (when being talked to after making a poor choice)
-I real real real want to...
