My "baby" turns 4

The birthdays of my children are a big reminder of how fast time flies by. Rachel turns 10 this year, and my little baby just turned 4. But, he is quick to let me know anytime I slip and actually call him my baby. "I am not your baby. I am a BIG BOY!" Matthew has the strongest will of any of my kids. He knows what we wants, and he will fight hard to get it. I love him for this, even when it drives me crazy (which is every day).

He is definitely a leader. He is always coming up with ideas and trying to get other people to do them with him. Scary thought as he gets older and those ideas get a little more dangerous! And, he talks to everyone. He chats up the people at the grocery store, always meets a new friend at the park, has long conversations on the phone anytime he beats me to answer it. He loves to talk and will do it any chance he gets.

I love Matthew's sense of humor. He laughs at everything and loves to make people laugh. He will make funny faces or funny noises just to get a good reaction. He cracks me up all the time.

I love you, little buddy. Happy 4th!

Matthew with his buddies Cam, Christopher, Lizzie and J.J.

We took the kids and Grammy to the Melting Pot on Matthew's birthday (rescheduled from my birthday). In trying to make the kids cautious, Grammy scared Matthew enough that he was terrified of the chocolate, but just the chocolate. He even told the waiter that he didn't want any chocolate. It just took a few seconds before he realized what he was missing, and he dug right in.

My mini-Dave

Before:

Mini-Dave, aka Alex, made another step today in his progression toward becoming his father - he ran through very cold temperatures, rain and snow to finish his first 5K. He did amazingly well and pushed himself to the end to finish in 28:52. We were so proud of him. He was the youngest person in the field of 103 and finished 63rd overall.

After:

This was a spur of the moment race. We kept meaning to train for it and prepare, but we just got busy. Then, the weather prediction was horrible. But, Dave made us get up and head over there. We got there just as the 1-mile fun run was beginning. The other kids, including Rachel's friend, decided to go for the run. Dave ran with Matthew, who did quite well running the entire way. It was surprisingly enjoyable given how cold and yucky the weather was. To reward all the runners, we headed to IHOP for a nice breakfast.

Matthew was so proud of himself and happily displays his medal!

Waiting for the Daves in the snow!

See, my boys really don't need toys...

Once again, my boys were found entertaining themselves with only imaginations (and all my linens). I heard squeals of laughter and calls for "Mommy". I knew something was up. At first, I was annoyed, but they were so cute and proud of themselves that I knew I needed to grab the camera.

The mess - luckily for them, cleaning the closet had been on my list of things to do. So, I just used the next 30 minutes to put everything back in order.

Mr. Independent

Ok, most of you usually hear me "discuss" my struggles with Matthew. He is a challenge because he is super-independent and super-opinionated. That is just not an easy combination for a parent to deal with, especially from the 4th child. He doesn't like to go with the flow. He wants to be in charge and do his own thing.

But, today, I took a moment to see those traits in all their glory. He wanted to button his pants, but after unsuccessfully trying and trying, he requested his church shirt (aka button down shirt) that he could button. He spent literally 20 minutes working on those buttons and wanted no help from me. Then, he unbuttoned to try it again! I know that determination like that will come in very handy as he gets older and I realize that his personality may mean big things for him in his life. So, while he is a challenging 3-year old at times, today I let myself enjoy and reflect on the future fruits of my labor. I was just thankful we had nowhere to be!

Why my boys don't need toys

Too wet to go outside - pillow football!

How to entertain a boy for hours...

buy a big pile of dirt!

3 days of digging up grass and spreading mulch was just pure fun for Matthew. He kept telling me when needed to go work on the mulch. I wish I could just buy a big pile to permanently leave in the backyard!

I guess that all that work really wore out Zack, though. He fell fast asleep watching Dave play Monkey Island, even with a lollipop in his mouth.

From the mouth of babes

I have to say that absolutely adore my Zack. He has such a sweet little heart. He is so sensitive and gets so worried about being away from me. He asked me tonight if he was going to be living in a different house when he was 21. I said "yes" (here's hoping, right?). He asked me (with the saddest expression on his face) if I was going to get rid of my kids now and get new kids. Of course, I explained that I wasn't going to and that he would always be my son. I reminded him that I still talk to and see Grammy even though we don't live together. He told me that I can't ever change my phone number because then he might not remember it. It's just one of those times that you want to hug them stronger and more deeply than possible. If you have kids, you understand that feeling.

Zack just has a wonderful soul. I love him dearly. In talking about death (which really comes up an unnatural amount in my family), Zack has proclaimed that he wants to die with me because he doesn't ever want to be without me. I think this was actually expressed that he wants me to die with him because even in heaven, he would be too sad without me. How can you not love that?