Another First

Who Knew?

Who knew that Daniel Boone had such an affection for the beach?

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever envision myself chasing my child down the beach, dressed from head to toe in a frontier costume, wearing black cowboy boots and yielding a rifle.  Or did I think I would ever say the phrase, "Son, you're going to ruin those cowboy boots in that salt water!" or "Buddy, your gun isn't going to work if you keep digging in the sand with it!"  Never in my wildest dreams.

My Baby

Will's bringing chubby back...

Daniel Boone

Daniel Boone was a man. Yes a big man.

With an eye like an eagle and as tall as a mountain was he.

Daniel Boone was a man. Yes a big man.

He was brave, he was fearless and as tough as a mighty oak tree.

From the coonskin cap on the top of ol' Dan

to the heel of his rawhide shoe,

The rippin'est, roarin'est, fightin'est man the frontier ever knew.

Daniel Boone was a man. Yes a big man.

And he fought for America to make all Americans free.

What a Boone.

What a wonder.

What a dream come truer was he.

Davy Crockett

Born on a mountaintop in Tennessee,

greenest state in the land of the free.

Raised in the woods so's he knew ev'ry tree,

killed him a bear when he was only three.

Davy, Davy Crockett, king of the wild frontier.

Fought single-handed through many a war,

Till the enemy was whipped and peace was in store.

And while he was handlin' this risky chore,

He made himself a legend forever more.

Davy, Davy Crockett, the man who knew no fear.

Davy, Davy Crockett,

king of the wild frontier.

Last Game

Sam had his last t-ball game last night.  To be honest, he has been counting done the games since the first one. You see, he would much rather be at home in his Davey Crockett costume "hunting Indians" than playing t-ball. I insisted that he finish, but I was happy too that last night was it as we sat there in the 100 degree heat.   We had a cookout after the game and each of the players got a trophy.  Sam was completely uninterested in the significance of the trophy or what the name plate said.  He was more concerned about why the man on the trophy was wearing long sleeves to play ball in.  Long sleeves like Davey Crockett wears.  In other words, he now believes he can wear his Davey Crockett outfit to play sports.  That's my boy.  My country, western, frontier-loving boy.

Daddies

To their Daddy...our boys are so blessed to know you as Daddy.  They adore you and so do I.  Happy Father's Day.

And to my Daddy...I love you and admire you.  Your Christian example and loving heart means so much to all of us.  Happy Father's Day.

Snag

Sam's tooth has been gone for over a month now. I have gotten use to that sweet, toothless grin and have grown to love his new, special smile. His Daddy jokingly calls him "Snag," which Sam find hysterical. The other day I was snapping pictures of him as he played inside and, as always, he looked up at me and smiled. And then, just like always, he asked to see the picture on my camera display. He glared at the photo for a few seconds and very matter of factly told me, "Mama, it's okay. I'll look better when my tooth comes back in." To which I grabbed him, kissed him, and reminded him of how absolutely perfect he is, just as he is. He couldn't be any more beautiful to me. Tooth or no tooth, he is my handsome, wonderful, little boy. And he always will be.

Cousins

They were born in a five week span. First came Riley. Two and a half weeks later came Cannon. And two and a half weeks later, Sam arrived. Three boys. The first born for two. The second son for another. Precious, sweet boys.

And now they are four. And they are preschoolers. They can climb the monkey bars and swim without water wings. They don't see each other nearly enough to live so close, but when they do they have the best time. They think it's pretty awesome that they are all the same age. So do I.

Random

Around our house lately...

Sam and Jack are completely obsessed with Davy Crockett.  We've moved on from Old Yeller to Davy Crockett.  Old Yeller is now the movie we watch in the car so I don't find myself singing "Here Yeller, come back Yeller...best doggone dog in the west" nearly as much these days.  Now I am constantly singing "Born on a mountaintop in Tennessee..."  I have seen Davy Crockett too many times to count in the past few days.  Thank you Jody and Amazon.com.

Jack has found a new love...having his back scratched.  He snuggles up beside you and insists that you "Scickle his back."  "Scickle" is Jack's idea of a scratch/tickle combination.

Sam told me yesterday that he wasn't ever going to have a girlfriend and that "all he needed was his Mama."  My heart melted.  He then announced that he wouldn't ever be attending school either.

I have yet to find a baby food Will won't eat.  Tonight he devoured a bowl of prunes and cereal.  More proof that he's the best baby ever.

Sam and Jack can both shoot a bow and arrow and properly hold and shoot their toy rifles. Their Daddy is so proud.

I order the new spicy chicken sandwich at Chick-fil-a every time I go now.  Even though it burns my insides and makes my nose run.  I have a problem.

Both boys are doing great in the water.  Sam can hold his breath very well and is practicing on swimming without his wings.  I've worked with him on coming up and taking a breath while continuing to swim and he is learning quickly.  I taught so many kids to swim during my summers at the local pool, but there's nothing like watching your own child learn.

Will strains to sit up anytime I lay him down.  He can now reach out and grab things, like Nana's necklace, and loves to hit the toys that hang from his car seat.

We made our first trip to the big pool this week.  The boys all did great and Rebecca was a huge help to me.  I'm not quite sure how I will manage all three by myself.  Rebecca sat with Will while he slept so that I could play with the big boys.  They had such fun jumping off the side to me and we made two rounds on the lazy river.  Unfortunately, Jack completely freaked out when I tried to pull the inter tube off of him and he went a little nuts.  He screamed and grabbed onto me, completely panicked.  Others were standing by us waiting to use our floats on the river. He grabbed my bathing suit top and jerked it down, completely exposing me.  I quickly grabbed my top and pulled it up while I heard someone say to me, "Oh, hi.  Can I help you?  I know you from Chick-fil-a."  Yes, it was one of the cashiers from my favorite hangout and now she had seen a whole new side of me.  Lovely.

Today I took the boys to the movies.  We met Ally there and Mary was also there with her kids.  The boys did great in the theater and I was surprised at how smooth things were going. Key word...were.  When we walked out, Jack saw one of those games where you drop the claw to retrieve a toy.  This particular one was full of balls and Jack screamed that he wanted one. I told him no and proceeded to walk.  My child fell out on the ground, kicking and screaming and holding onto my legs.  I was horrified.  And he kept doing it.  I passed Will off to Ally and carried him to the machine, fished out fifty cents from my wallet and showed him that these games are a trick and impossible to win.  He went even more nuts.  Screaming at the top of his lung.  Flailing his body.  Kicking and screaming.   Snot and tears everywhere. Mothers were walking by me, smiling and looking at me with such pity.  I was mortified.  I literally had to pick him up, throw him over my shoulder and carry him kicking and screaming to the car. Thirty seconds after getting him in the car, he was smiling and happy again.  I, on the other hand, was a sweaty, tired mess.  Allyson told me later that everyone appreciated Jack showing them how good their children were behaving. 

My crazy, unpredictable, wonderful life.  And it's only Wednesday.

Losing It

It's happening.  It was inevitable.  Most babies go through it.  His older brothers did.  But still, it makes me sad.  Will is losing all his sweet baby hair.  He has very little left on top while the back remains thick and dark.   So he looks like a man with a horribly bad receding hair line. His hair comes out in thick sections and I find it stuck in the folds of his yummy, chubby neck.  It's a sad time for me.  I always hate seeing that beautiful, newborn hair disappear.

Thankfully, Will doesn't seem to mind.  His self esteem remains in tact, hair or no hair. Maybe because I keep telling him not to worry, that it's just hair, and it will grow back. And I constantly kiss that precious receding hair line. And, of course, I remind him that he's still the most handsome, adorable, three month old I know.  Bald or not.

That Smile

When trouble is your middle name and you thrive off mischief and love to cause chaos, it sure makes it harder for your Mama to stay mad at you when you have a smile like this. Works every time.

Passing Time

Today I was putting pictures into an album. I had to start a new album and had to remove the paper from the first few pages. I laid the paper on the floor beside me and continued to work. Soon the boys ran over and grabbed the scissors and tape and began cutting away at the scrap paper. After cutting Sam would run over to me and tell me the most random things to write on his paper. Then he and Jack would hang it up on the frame of the door.

Sam told me to write...

"This is the zoo house." "Davy. " "This is Davy Crockett land with the Alamo." "This is animal planet with a lot of animal costumes." "Whoever is good gets a surprise, even pizza!" "Nobody mess with Mama's computer." "This is white people's zoo house" (I have no clue what this means).

Jack only contributed "Four!" They hung all their random thoughts up, stood back and both said how beautiful it looked. I was just happy we had managed to eat up thirty minutes of the afternoon doing something that didn't create too big of a mess. Win, win.

Winning Me Over

After our tough day yesterday, Sam's conscience must have gotten the best of him late last night.  I had disappeared to my room to get Will to sleep when I heard a knock on my door.  It was my oldest son.  

He said, "Mama, is Will asleep?" 

 "Yes, he just went to sleep." 

 "Well, I just wanted you to know that you do a good job getting Will to stop crying and getting him to go to sleep.  Mama, you're a good Mama.  I love you."

And he ran back to the playroom.

And all the stress of earlier in the day was forgotten.  He had won me over.  Like he always does.  Okay, Jack, now it's your turn, sweetie.

Playing Favorites

I don't play favorites. I try very hard to treat all my children equally. But today, I have a favorite child. You, sweet Will, are my favorite today. What makes you my favorite today? Simple things, really. You didn't scream so loudly at the park when you slightly injured your lip that everyone thought you were surely dying. You didn't change clothes sixteen times today according to what you were playing at the time. You didn't grab the bun off my chicken sandwich and ball it up into a tight dinner roll before I could even take a bite. You didn't get into an argument with your cousin at the park that ended with you both claiming to never speak to one another again. You didn't call sweet Miss Patt, our dear friend at Chick-fil-a, a "stinky head" when she tried to give you a hug. And you certainly didn't tell her you were going to go home and get your gun and shoot her because she started loving on your baby brother. You didn't throw a tantrum when I said it was time to leave and require me to drag you, kicking and screaming, through the crowded parking lot. You sat nicely in your car seat and didn't stand behind me, as I was driving, screaming in my ear that you didn't want to buckle up. You didn't drive your tractor into the side of Mama's car and leave a nice red streak down the side. So, yes, if I had a favorite (which, of course, I don't), you would be it, sweet boy. Thank you for keeping me from teetering over into insanity with your sweet smiles and warm love. You are the best.

Jack of All Trades

Eddie is a guy that helps Jody out around the farm. He works cattle, bush hogs pastures, cuts grass and mends fences. He also helps Jody's Mema in her yard and keeps her sister Colleen's yard clean too. He helps me tremendously by trimming tree limbs, weed eating, washing my car and anything else I ask him to do. This is wonderful since my husband is busy in the evenings and on weekends with the cows and can't seem to find the time to help his dear old wife out when she needs it. I joke with Eddie that he has to be the part of the husband that does chores and maintenance for Jody. He is quite a character and he gets really excited and starts talking so fast some times I can't understand him. He makes me laugh and Jody makes me laugh harder when he imitates him. I look forward to hearing stories about Eddie and what he has done that is particularly crazy at work that day. He really does anything and everything to help us and I have grown to depend on him However, tonight he helped me in an area I wasn't quite expecting. I called Jody inside to feed Will for a couple of minutes while I bathed Sam and Jack. Jody and Eddie were mixing chemicals and he really didn't want to stop, but I insisted. I returned to the den to find this...

Eddie, our farm helper, feeding cereal and bananas to my baby. And thoroughly enjoying it. Jody was standing nearby reading his chemical bottle and grinning. Eddie was giggling, talking about an airplane coming in to land and repeatedly saying, "Okay, Will, okay. Open up. Open up. Here it comes. Here it comes!" Look at my child. He is certainly in shock, thinking "You are definitely not my Mama."

Soon, Will was cooing and grinning and then flat out laughing. And Eddie was laughing too. Will is such a happy boy and was just thankful to be eating. It was a sight. A sight I didn't expect to see. Never a dull moment around here.