Comparison, part 2

I know you should never compare your kids.  It is never good, and clearly you don't have the same one-on-one time with a second kid that you do with the first.  And you can multiply that if you have 3 kids at once.

Regardless, it is hard not to.  The little boys don't have nearly the verbal skills that Z did at this age (not that they're bad, but Z was so good!).

And as I was looking through pictures and my blog as I often do, just to see WHAT we were doing with Z at this age, and how he was doing, I came across this picture, taken in August, when Z was the exact same age as the little boys: 

He was able to do all of those puzzles with just a little bit of help.  The little boys have never even SEEN a cardboard puzzle.  (Really?  Here, kids, take these small bits of cardboard with your favorite character on them and try to put them together and not snatch them or hit each other or carry them all over the house and lose them.  And we'll help you learn.)

So I got hit with a bit of a guilty mom conscience, and we decided to let the boys try them.  I ended up in tears since even with me and Nate both working with the boys (and Z butting in to "help") it was still hard.  After a bit of time and effort and just showing them how to do them, they all kind of got the hang of it, but I couldn't help but feel like I was not going to be able to help them to learn how to do all the things that they should learn...and how will I do it when they get to school?  There is only one me, or even two of us, but there are four of them, and three at the same level.  I still have no clue how it will work....but I know that it will...somehow...
 

They are good boys, and they are smart, and I know that they will learn, and that we will learn how to help them as we go...just as we have learned everything else up to this point (at least sort of learned!).