And we threw the schedule right out the window...

So it figures that my kid would be language delayed. I had dreams of doing speech therapy on him every day until he became this miraculous freak of nature kid who spoke in sentences at 12 months, but that's not how God made my sweet, perfect little boy.

God has been persistent with this whole teaching me patience thing since Hunter was born. It was a lesson I was resistent to learning, but apparently He feels like I lack this virtue in a major way, because He has - not quietly - shown me over the last 18 months that I need more and more opportunities to practice it.

Hunter has one word in his expressive vocabulary y'all. Don't get me wrong. He is dang good at that word and will use it appropriately all day long if given the oppportunity. Oh and you know when your mom is a speech therapist, every chance will be taken to manipulate social situations so that your one word expressive vocabulary can be used to maximum capacity. I don't think any other toddler can say "bye bye" as beautifully as he can. I guess technically you could say he has 4 words, but the English minor in me isn't willing to count "yum", "moo", and "baa baa" (as in black sheep) as words. Harsh, I know. It's tough being my kid.

This lack of expressive language is the major reason we've decided to finally enroll Hunter in day care (or as I will refer to it from now on because I am hating the stigma attached to day care, school). He starts in the 18-24 month class on Monday, so this Wednesday, Thursday, Friday Hunter and I are going up to his school from 9-10 to participate together in the activities with his teachers and classmates.

I'm feeling really, really good about this decision. This school is next to impossible to get in to and there have been 3 times now that they have called me with inexplicable openings. (God had to nudge a little hard for James and I to see the plan here.) The most stressful thing about this change is that Hunter still takes 2 naps a day at 9:30 and 2:30. His new class naps at 11:45 until I pick him up at 2. I am seeing serious tantrums in Hunter's teachers' future. They got a glimpse of these today as we neared the 10 o'clock hour and my son began incessantly rubbing his eyes. As tired as he was, though, he would not nap for my sister all day. Does anyone want to guess when I put him down for his first (and only) nap of the day? 3:50. Yes. 3:50. AKA, over six hours after he usually lays down for his first nap. Surprisingly though, he wasn't really anymore tantrumy than he's been the rest of the week, so this helps me to stress out a tiny bit less over the napping transition in our immediate future.

I loved Hunter's teachers today, and he had a great time in chapel and in outside play with his classmates. I really talked up school all morning in my happiest, sing-songy, super excited voice. I had him almost convinced that it was going to be a fun time before we left the house... As you can see he was still a little hesitant, but by the time we got there (after much more high pitched, sing songy "school is soooo much fun!!!!!" type statements), he couldn't contain the excitement...

How can you not fall in love with that boy? God couldn't have matched a more perfectly laid back, chill kid with this high energy, dramatic mama. I heart him. So much:)