Life in Caracas has been tough these past three weeks, so I haven't had much energy, time or inspiration to update the blog. But as I reflect, Santi turned two and Mati is fast approaching his fifth birthday ... time flies and they are changing by the day. So here's a brief update.
Mateo
Still an Energizer Bunny, full of questions that seem to pop out of nowhere, curiosity and faster than the wink of eye, leaving his baby years behind. Lately he's the all pre-K'er. He's proud to go to school and loves it. He's made lots of friends, of all ages, and lives in his own world. He's pretty much oblivious to the norms society imposes, his world is all about being funny, running, playing and learning. For example, our little man here doesn't just speak three languages anymore, he has added Japanese and Chinese to the mix! We went to the Chinese market last weekend and he confidently said hello and goodbye to the people and watched with awe and admiration as Nico showed off his language skills. He is still curious as to how babies come out and how they get into a mommy's belly; and there's still a fascination with death. He had another ant bite him in the leg and that spurred again the conversation about allergies and death. He doesn't like to be outdone by his brother, so he had a bit of a hard time accepting that we were celebrating Santi's birthday and not his. He's anxiously counting down the number of days till his birthday and constantly asks what we are going to do and who he can invite. Ahhh, if life could be as complicated as that ....
Oh yes, I shouldn't forget the ongoing fascination with soccer. He remembers (surprised???) what countries played against each other and what the score was. And now, we are on the hunt for a World Cup Spain soccer jersey, WITH THE STAR, because Mateo doesn't like to be associated with losers!!!!!
The school assessed him over a period of three weeks and recommended we keep him in Pre-K. While they agreed that his intellectual capacity is beyond that of a pre-K'er, he would lag behind a normal Kindergardener in fine motor skills and spatial ordering. I wasn't surprised to be honest because there's NO DENYING that his little fingers just don't work as fast and as well as his brain; and I'm quite comfortable, NOW, with this decision. We did make a point, however, that we wanted the school to implement their "differential teaching" and make sure that while his classmate were learning all about number 1, as they are this week, Mateo goes beyond. And we want this push, not because we want him to be an overachiever, but because he is curious and intellectually thirsty. We'll meet with the school in three weeks to see how things are progressing.
Santiago
Ahhh, my little guy. He is such an adorable baby when we are alone, but beware, as he turns into a wild child when his brother is around. He's having the hardest time out of all four of us, I think, with this change. He's confused and lost. He wants nothing to do with Nico at night, just Mommy, and wakes up super early with frantic screams. When we drop Mateo off at school, he doesn't want to leave, he's so comfortable playing with the older boys and girls, that I literally need to peel him away. Being the second child, he's so cool playing with anyone, no matter that they are older or that he can't verbally communicate with them. He's craving a little world of friends and play. Unfortunately, with the Parliamentary Elections on the 26th of September and by order of the Ministry of Education, all Venezuelan schools will remain closed until October - to keep people off the streets prior and during the elections, I guess voting turns into wild parties down here!! So, I drag him into all these boring parties and get togethers full of boring adults who don't have any cool toys ... he gets restless, cranky, pulls on me and says, "Mommy, let's go. Come on!" He has had pretty massive meltdowns ... unstoppable crying and huge dramatic productions. I never really know what to do when he has one of these in public, other than let him cry it out. The more I try to reason with him, the more hysterical he gets, but people here don't let children cry the way Santi does. Today, he had one of these massive tantrums in the supermarket. EVERYONE turned around and would ask him what was the matter, which only made matters worse. And so then, what do they do???? Give him candy!!! Yes, please, give him a reward for being a spoiled baby!!!!
He continues to play a lot with cars: loves to make lines and put them inside the big trucks they have. ALWAYS when we go out, he stuffs his backpack with cars and trucks and demands to put it on: never leaves home without it! Lately, he puts on his bicycle helmet to play around the house and sometimes even goes out in public with it on, which makes for a very comical scene!
He is also turning very musical. He dances and sings and is very interested in music in general. Maybe associated with his musical inclination is his improved language skills: it's clearer and he's making longer phrases. He's favorite one: "When Pee pan out, he flies." (Translation: when Peter Pan comes out, he flies.) However, he has one VERY annoying habit, especially for Mateo: he repeats everything we say. It's adorable to hear him speak though: "Santi no like it." "Santi turn." "Mateo school Campo."
Mateo & Santiago
The boys' dynamic is complex. They can play together for a while but then Santi usually starts taking Mateo's toys, which upsets Mateo and is the start of fights.
M: "Santi, I'm not your friend!!! You are a bad friend!"
S: "No Mati ... friends."
M: "Give me my car."
S: "No Mati ... Santi turn."
Interestingly, Santi usually keeps his cool during the whole fight, while Mati goes hysterical! But then Mati resorts to violence, Santi responds by pinching or pulling hair, and the whole scene spirals down pretty quickly!!! You get the picture, no?
Enjoy the pictures!
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