KK Turns 4

KK, you are four years old now!

My gentle giant—you’re still in the 95th percentile for both height and weight, at least according to the urgent care paperwork from your most recent ear infection. Your well check is in a few weeks.  

Most people still mistake you for a kindergartener. Literally, someone asked me the other day what kindergarten you go to! It cracks me up, because if they just talked to you for a second, they’d quickly realize you’re a totally normal, wild, and free four-year-old boy.

(Email readers click through to read, if you aren't into family posts more recipes coming soon!)

You did great in school this year, going two days a week. You ran into that classroom and quite literally didn’t look back. You’re confident and engaged, and you love the stimulation, structure, and activities that keep you busy. While you're always happy to see me at the end of the day, you run straight into your classroom each morning, immediately excited to get started. You absolutely love it.

Your teacher’s comments were that you focus really well when working individually. You love arts and crafts, painting, and playdough. You've also improved your ability to focus and stay engaged in group settings, though you still have boatloads of energy.

Since your birthday is at the end of the year, we’re planning for you to do pre-K three days a week this coming school year. You’ll actually start this summer, attending daycare/preschool three days a week with your siblings. If needed, since you are a end of the year/summer birthday we may delay kindergarten so you’re not expected to tone down your energy before it’s developmentally appropriate. That said, I also don’t want you to be bored waiting a year, so we’ll see how it goes!

The good news? You LOVE school. You make friends easily and adore being around people. You also love monster trucks and action figures of all kinds—Hulk, Spiderman, Transformers, and more. You're so imaginative when you play (and a bit destructive). We’re working on being a little gentler with toys so they don’t break, but I love how creative and immersed you are in your play.

You tried baseball/T-ball this year and LOVED it. You loved it so much, we got you your own bat and T-ball stand for your birthday. We also upgraded your balance bike to the bigger version, and plan to attach the pedals in a few months once you’ve adjusted to the new size. You also love to wrestle, so we’ll likely sign you up for wrestling soon. You’re still in swim lessons and, while you’re a bit timid in the water, you’ve developed strong skills.

We always tell you that you’re special because you get to be both a big brother and a little brother. You and your older brother are very different, but you love each other fiercely. As hard as it can be to navigate brotherly squabbles, I know it’s good for your sweet nature to learn how to stand up for yourself. You’re naturally more observant and gentle, but you’ve learned to speak up when it matters—and that’s a skill I’m grateful your siblings are helping you develop, even if it’s hard (for you and for me).

As for your little sister—while she can definitely annoy you (as any toddler does to a preschooler)—you love her fiercely. As I mentioned in her birthday post, you’re always watching out for her when we’re out and about. You love to hold her hand and lead her along, and you get worried when she strays farther than you’d like. It’s clear you love your siblings with every fiber of your being and would never let anything happen to them. You love sharing things you get from school with your brother and creating shared experiences together.

Potty training: You did well this year! We had a few regressions, but we worked through them quickly—pretty typical three-year-old stuff. We still need to prompt you for number two, but overall, you’re doing great. Some days, you even wake up dry in your pull-up, but like KJ, we won’t push overnight training. If you’re not consistently dry by five or five and a half, we’ll use a potty training alarm like we did with your brother.

Tantrums: They've actually increased a bit in the last few months. With KJ, they were fading by this age, but it’s almost like you’ve suddenly found your voice and want to use it to make sure things go your way. Like everything in childhood, it’s just a phase—shaped by sleep, development, illness, and the daily chaos of preschool life.

Here are a few of your current favorite things:

• Favorite foods: White shell mac and cheese, bacon, white eggs, healthy French toast with syrup, healthy waffles with syrup, grilled cheese, cheese toast, grapes, blueberries, chocolate anything, candy of all kinds, frosting (just like Mama!), and SmoothieBox smoothies.
  Favorite toys: Kinetic sand, plasma car, stickers, balance bike, monster trucks, and action figures (Spiderman, Hulk...)
• Favorite movies: lightening mcqueen, Ratatouille, Moana 1 and 2, Finding Dory, Rio, Walle, Toy Story 
• Favorite shows: Dinotrux, Shark Dog, Clifford, Wild Kratts

Past KK Posts:

• KK 3 Years Old
• KK 2.5 Years Old
• KK 2 Years Old
• KK 18 Months
• Baby KK 15 Months
• Baby KK 12 Months
• Baby KK 11 Months
• Baby KK 9 & 10 months
• Baby KK 7-8 Months
• Baby KK Six Months
• Baby KK Five Months
• Baby KK Four Months
• Baby KK Three Months (4th Trimester Wrap-Up)
• Baby KK Two Months
• Baby KK One Month 

Photography taken 3/2025 by @nlowphoto