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Having a birthday also means getting a check up. So, exactly a week after the big day, we went to see Keegan’s doctor. It has been a difficult week, with lots of tantrums and lots of pushing boundaries, with the apex the night before: an epic meltdown at bedtime that meant going to bed without books or cuddles.

That seemed to work, fortunately, so he was very well behaved at the doctor’s office. I can’t really say the same for me, as I was getting very irritated by the long wait. This time he got seen both by a resident doctor and our usual doctor. As a fist thing, he had to take an eye test. Just a regular test, with symbols instead of letters. He has perfect 2o/20 at this point. Of course we don’t really have much hope he will keep it, but hopefully it will last a long time. Then they gave him an hearing test: they placed headphones on him, and asked him to clap when he was hearing a whistle. He did well in this test too, showing not only a good hearing, but also good comprehension and ability to follow directions. They also gave him a gown for the first time: a gown that would fit a 10 years old. He kept him on long enough for a photo and then he was running around naked.

Everything else got checked too: he is in good health and at a good development state. We talked about the fact he is “double jointed” (Hypermobility) just like me, and what sports would be good for him. We are leaning towards contact sports, like wrestling or martial arts…unfortunately he is still too young for that. He still on the 50% for height (approx. 95 cm or 37 in) and up to an incredible 50% for weight at 31 lb (14 kg). Amazing! Maybe we should put him on a diet now…just kidding.

The worse part of the exam was the blood test. While last time it did not phase him, maybe because he did not know what it was, this time he was scared and cried a lot. Fortunately it only lasted a minute or so. We are checking for lead: our house used to contain lead based paint, and when the drywall was cut open, some of the dust spread so we want to make sure he does not have elevated lead levels. We have not seen the results yet, but no news hopefully is good news.

So, what can we say about our 3 year old?

• He really likes languages, at this point. He often asks us how to say something in one language or another. He also still enjoys his Spanish class a lot
• He also likes water and swimming. He is learning how to swim alone. Now he can jump underwater and swim alone for a few seconds, come back for air and go under again. He is not moving very far, but at least I feel better knowing he knows how to come up for air
• He is getting more and more interested in puzzles. He still not excellent at it, but he enjoys trying (and getting some help finishing them up). He likes to play with them in the new under the stair storage closet. We are tryng to explain to him that it is not his new hideaway…

• He is more physical than ever. He loves to jump, and he is quite fearless, and likes to run and wrestle. He still craves physical contact all the time. At this point, we are full of “battle” scars
• He is still very social: all day interaction at school is still not enough. He wants more and we try to plan after school activities and playdates as often as possible.
• He is showing some interest in reading, asking what some words say. He recognizes the whole alphabet, and recognizes the letters in simple words like Vons and Taxi. He is starting to recognize letters sounds and what letter a word starts with
• He  still likes books a lot
• His favorite toys are trains and balls (soccer balls, jumping balls, throwing balls), but he is also enjoying playing (banging) with tools like his toy power drill or the hammer

• He likes music, dancing and singing.
• He is still very intense, in good and bad. He squeals with joy and screams in anger
• He knows how to roll the R
• He can dress and undressed by himself, with few mistakes. Still working on buckles, zippers, etc.
• He likes pretend play and dress up. One of his favorite activities at school is dressing up like a tiger and running around growling

So, he is a wonderfully active little boy, and it is amazing to watch him grow and develop into his own little person, so similar to me but also so different.