Mateo & Santiago: Happy 3rd Birthday!!

Oooh, another year for Mati ... and the changes have been huge!! No longer a passive little observer, he's now very assertive (NO! Mine! Vete! - get the drift???) and expressive (read as: lots of tantrums, explosive crying, physically assertive). As parents, we are shocked at the changes , trying to find a way to deal with them, and find explanations for them (could these be delayed TERRIBLE TWOs, jealousy over Santi, school, are we spoiling him), but regardless, we are very happy with our Mateo. He's still a darling and very affectionate ... of course, only when he wants to be ... and seeing the world through his eyes is such a joy!

I took him in to the doctor last week and he's growing very well, despite his constant eating strikes, which still continue. He weighs 13.600kg and measures 97.5cm.

Other progress reports:

1. He's doing an amazing job at swimming: he's learning freestyle!
2. He LOVES school - after this long weekend, I told him we were going back to Bogota because he had to go to school and he was so happy, he ran to the car!
3. Still talks and talks and talks ... the Energizer Bunny of Speech. And he still sings a lot.
4. Hello independence! Mati has starting wanting to do a lot of things on his own, like getting dressed, jumping, doing a lot of little tasks.
5. Imagination galore! The other day I was giving him his bath and he was splashing water all over. I asked to please not splash because I could slip and fall with Santi. He answered: "Mamita, it wasn't me. It's Dory and Marlin (from Finding Nemo) who are splashing, they are swimming away from Bruce!
6. Observative - he notices EVERYTHING!! If I paint my nails, I change a painting, nothing goes unnoticed.

Here are some pictures from our trip to Villa de Leyva.