This month’s article has arrived a little late, but better late than never! The Joys of Four-ness: How to Tame the Beast that is Four can be found here.

Every year, I seem to hear mutterings from more seasoned parents - “You thought (insert child’s current age here) was tough! Wait until (insert upcoming age of said child).” This has happened so often, I began to ignore the mutterings. Fool! This year is no different. When my son was first three and things were rough , I heard four was easier. And with a sigh of relief I thought they were right. Then about two weeks (literally) before my son’s fourth birthday, I heard it was tougher. And now that I’m in the world of four, and see the writing on the wall. I know I’ll never believe those “experts” again!

Simultaneously a joy and the biggest challenge yet, four is a world of supreme happiness and sudden sorrow. There is nothing better than watching your child flourish and grow, but nothing more sorrowful than knowing they’re growing up and their baby days are gone. And nothing more challenging some days than coping with their new found independence since they still aren’t quite sure of the best way to assert that.