Conversations with my kiddos

I have three kids.  All of them have different personalities, and all of them are at different stages in their development.  Consequently, my conversations with each of them are all different.

My conversations with Tyler are short.  I do most of the talking, and he gives one or two word answers when required.  A typical conversation with him sounds something like this...

Me:  Good morning little buddy.  Are you ready for breakfast?
Tyler:  Yeah!  CRUNCH!!!
Me:  OK.  Let's go downstairs.  (I pick him up and carry him downstairs.  After setting him down, he points at the TV.)
Tyler:  Toons.
Me:  OK.  I'll turn on cartoons.  What would you like to watch?
Tyler:  Buppies!
Me:  Bubble Guppies is not on right now.  You can watch Dora or Team Umizoomi.
Tyler:  DORA!!!

My conversations with Adam are at the other end of the scale.  He does most of the talking, but he requires me to be an active participant by providing one or two word answers when called upon.  A typical conversation with him goes like this...

Adam:  Mom?......  Hey Mom!.........MOMMMMMM!!! (he will continue until I answer him)
Me:  Yes Adam?
Adam:  Can I play with Cameron tonight?
Me:  We'll see.
Adam:  Last time we played the Wii together and we almost killed the big monster.  We made it to the purple castle and Cameron died, and I tried to kill the monster by myself but I died too.  (He then goes on to describe in great detail the events of the game.  After several minutes, he brings me back into the conversation.)
Adam:  Mom?.....MOM!!!!  Hey, MOMMMMMMM!!!
Me:  What?
Adam:  So, can you text Cameron's Mom to see if we can play tonight?

Even though Adam does most of the talking, our conversations can be somewhat exhausting.

Miss Sadie is on the extreme end of the scale.  Most of the time, she does not require my participation at all... only my presence.  She just talks.  I get worn out trying to follow her train of thought, so I admit that I don't always pay close attention to what she's saying.  As a result, I can't really recap a typical conversation with her.

My kids love to talk, but our house is about to get a whole lot quieter.  The summer is coming to an end, and Adam and Sadie will be starting school soon.  After a bit of break during the day, I'll be ready to hear everything they have to tell me about school.  :)

The 1, 2, 3 countdown

One week until Adam starts soccer practice.
Two weeks until Adam goes back to school.
Three weeks until Sadie starts school.
I'm calling this my 1, 2, 3 countdown.

It's hard to believe Adam will be in first grade this year.  Having him at school all day will sure be different, but I'm ready.  I hope he is too.  Sometimes I worry I've babied him too much and not given him the opportunities he needs to grow.  For instance:

Adam is the only kid in his swimming class who won't get his face wet. 
All the other kids his age in the neighborhood ride bikes without training wheels. 
He is the only kid his age I know of that insists on wearing winter gloves when eating popsicles so his hands won't get cold. 

Have I gone wrong somewhere?  In my effort to be a good mother and shield him from the world, have I been coddling him too much?  The evidence says yes.  I hope I haven't done any permanent damage.  :)

In other news, we bought Sadie her first bike helmet a few days ago, and she is super excited.  Here she is riding around the neighborhood.