Before I had kids, I had a pretty clear picture of what I wanted our son to be like. Years ago when I worked at the Child Development Center at college there was this sweetheart of a boy, Brooks. He captured my heart. And I thought, "I hope I have a boy like this one day."
Years later, there was a sweet little boy who used to go to our church and the same thought crossed my mind, "I hope, if we ever have a boy, he's like him."
A couple of years later, we had a boy. And over these four years I've had the priviledge to see him develop. And I can confidently say that the Lord created the most perfect boy for me. I could not have picked or drawn up or conjoured up a better boy.
Is he perfect? haha. NO WAY. In fact, Grant has challenged me beyond belief. His entry into the world was a good foreshadowing of the rough days ahead. I like to say, he's a passionate sort of fellow.
And part of that is that he's tender hearted.
Oh is he so tender hearted.
He's all boy but he still loves to come and snuggle. He gently pats Kate's back when she's around. And he tells us ALL, SEVERAL TIMES, he loves us.
He's challenged me the most in the field of discipline. And when he whines, well, now-a-days I hear my own voice in him at that age (thanks to video recording).
He loves his blankey. He loves television and any video game but especially Super Mario Brothers. His best friend is Hannah (as stated in our new birthday questionaire tradition). He loves to be held, still.
I remember when I was pregnant with Kate Hannah told Grant, "You know when Mommy has the baby she won't be able to hold you anymore."
That broke my heart a little. Because, she was right in a small way. With a baby came a bit of growing up on Grant's part. And yes, the carrying around of Grant did slow down. But it hasn't stopped. Mainly because well, he's so darn nagging that I can't help but NOT carry him up the stairs. And I'm glad I do.
He loves fruit snacks, well, any snack. The birthday questionaire also asked, what is something your mom always says?
He answered, "you can't have a snack."
Yes, he asks ALL. THE. TIME. Right after breakfast. While I'm making lunch. Righ after lunch. So on and Son.
I hate to see what the grocery bill will look like in the coming years. And I feel for you mothers of multiple boys.
Those are just a few thoughts on my wonderful Grant. And I'll leave you with a few more with these pictures.
When some random man who came in the delivery room for "Operation Hurry Up and Suck that Baby Out," he guessed Grant weighed, oh, about 7 lbs. upon putting him on the scale. Sorry, add 2 more pounds and twelve ounces to that. The whole delivery was a bit maddening from having the nurse doze off while I was pushing. Yes, I caught her. Eyes closed and she WAS NOT praying. To the nurse who told me to quit screaming and push after having pushed for two hours only to keep hearing "We can't get him over that bone." I guess my pelvic bone. For good reason. And in a fit of desperation I remember thinking, "I'm going to die here, on this table. This is it." I was being dramatic. I'll confess. But I had no clue how the good Lord was going to get him out of me. He did. With a vaccum. Thank the Lord for vaccums. And thank the Lord for epidurals. I know many people go al natural..but I am thankful that the juice was flowing. I'll stop there. Happy FIRST birthday little one. You were worth the
drama.
And this picture. Hannah is Kate's age now in this picture. Such a baby. But I thought she was such a big girl then. I remember the nurse at the pediatrician asked me how old Hannah was when we went to Grant's first appointment. "20 months," I said. "Wow, she's just a baby herself," she replied. I didn't think so. My, how my perspective has now changed. Not quite 20 months and already a big sister. But she's owned that role so nicely too. She's a great big sister. I love that girl.
That big cheesy grin was there even at age one when we introduced him to his own Wheely Bug. Though excited, it wasn't as big of a hit with him as it was with Hannah at that age. At least it makes a good picture. I remember at his 1 year check up I asked the pediatrician, "Is it normal for a one year old to throw major fits, rolling all over the floor and screaming for minutes on end?" He said yes. And that began the discipline season which, of course, continues today. I'm happy to say the floor fits are few and far between this, three years later. Happy One year birthday baby boy.
At least his early start with the fit throwing didn't make me dread the terrible twos. In fact, I embraced them thinking the two's couldn't be as bad as the one's. And they must not have been because it doesn't stand out. But that blonde hair sure did. Moving away from that baby look, my little two year old was looking more like a boy. A cutie pie. Happy second birthday baby boy.
When he turned three, Grant grew a mustache. John is kind of hairy so it made sense to us. Or, oh yeah, maybe that was for his Pirate Party. This marked the beginning of, "Oh yeah, I love birthday parties, when do I get to have another one?" Happy 3rd Birthday Grant.
And now, here we are, four years old. And yes, that's a Care Bear. Our buddy Grant has wanted a Care Bear since he was able to walk. Seriously. So, I gave in. I found this guy on Ebay and snagged him. Obviously, Grant is happy he is able to finally care for his very own Care Bear. The Care Bear looks pretty happy too. We'll share more pictures from his big celebration. But this one is my favorite. Pure joy. Happy fourth birthday buddy! You're a pretty awesome guy and I am so thankful I get to share in your life. WE LOVE YOU.
1 comments:
happy birthday, sweet Grant!! When I was pregnant with John, and I was watching Grant (and Hannah), Grant was such a sweet little guy, and he was who I wanted John to be like :) Which, since Grant has been your hardest, and your most "cuddly," I guess John is a bit like him ;)
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