When I look at my son today I see a tall, cute college guy who still exhibits that mischievous gleam in his eye, has the ability to make us cr-a-zy, and gives us moments of shining promise for the man is he becoming.
Of all the times I shared with my son by myself the character he created by himself after a bath one night out-of-the-blue are some of my fondest. He climbed out of the tub, curled himself into a tight little ball on the floor and proceeded to totally cover himself with a towel. I used his name something like "Alex, let's get you dried off." He responded in a very low, deep voice, "I'm not Alex." "Oh, I'm sorry! Who are you?" "I am Bob the Lump." I was so surprised. I just giggled went right along with this fabulous, creative turn in the emerging personality huddled in front of me on the tile. I properly introduced myself to 'Bob" and that began a friendship with a facet of my son's imagination which appeared after every bath for a very long time. Those were wonderful moments.
Now I look at him and see my temperament and his father's ability to argue extemporaneously.
I see my artistic slant and his dad's sports expertise. But more importantly I see his own big heart, his stubbornness, his wonderful sense of humor, his need to be taken seriously. I see a relentless three year old now a young adult who will not only survive but will thrive and succeed as a strong Christian bound to make his own personal mark on this world he embraces with arms wide open. And isn't that the grandest blessing of all.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Favorite Quotes
I kept a daily diary on our son for the first two years of his life. From then through middle school I wrote frequently just not everyday. The high school years were busy and I made notes of the special times and signs of maturity that had begun to peek through adding hope and senses of accomplishment to his progress.
This gift of ours has given us endless days of laughter and frustration. Pride and humility. Stress and joy. What most parents experience . Here are some sparkling examples of how he has enriched our days and made it all worthwhile.
"You know Christ the Lord is Jesus' nickname."
"Great. My mother is losing her mind." (This after he asked me is I remember something that he was trying to explain which supposedly had happened some time in the past and I had NO idea what he was talking about.)
"That's the Civil War. Lots of Americans fought there and lots died. They went up to heaven and turned into angels and one got to be the Tooth Fairy." (A TV commercial promoting a new Civil War documentary caught his attention.)
"That's just the way the world works. (I made the observation that he was playing with a boy he was very angry with the day before.)
"Because it takes too much of my energies to think of it."(when asked by his dad why he couldn't hit the baseball each time it was tossed to him at age 5.)
What a hoot. Made it all worthwhile.
This gift of ours has given us endless days of laughter and frustration. Pride and humility. Stress and joy. What most parents experience . Here are some sparkling examples of how he has enriched our days and made it all worthwhile.
"You know Christ the Lord is Jesus' nickname."
"Great. My mother is losing her mind." (This after he asked me is I remember something that he was trying to explain which supposedly had happened some time in the past and I had NO idea what he was talking about.)
"That's the Civil War. Lots of Americans fought there and lots died. They went up to heaven and turned into angels and one got to be the Tooth Fairy." (A TV commercial promoting a new Civil War documentary caught his attention.)
"That's just the way the world works. (I made the observation that he was playing with a boy he was very angry with the day before.)
"Because it takes too much of my energies to think of it."(when asked by his dad why he couldn't hit the baseball each time it was tossed to him at age 5.)
What a hoot. Made it all worthwhile.
Favorite Stories
(**NOTE: My grand plan to write a post each day prior to my son's birthday was interrupted by the "modem not communicating with the server" for the three days prior to our departure and then the actual onset of our week-long family vacation. Now back, the son is officially an adult and I am ready to write the three remaining entries! Thanks for your patience and understanding.)
While the child grew up the general greeting I received at work was not "How are you?" or "Good Morning!"...it was "We want another story!" and ""What happened yesterday??". Our son had a knack for finding himself as the poster child for behavior that all other mothers loved to hear about (and were secretly thrilled that it was NOT their child!!!). I laughed along with the rest of them. Couldn't really do much else...and heck, it made life interesting and most of his scrapes were funny (at least after the shock wore off).
Some of my favorites:
Soon after his enrollment in a very well known and hallowed child care program in our community he decided to test his balance. He climbed up on a little wooden chair to see if he could stand on the top. Alas, he could not and four stitches ensued.
As we all know children at the age of 3 or 4 tend to say what they think or feel. They are curious and blunt and make verbal observations without any qualms at all. One afternoon when I picked him up at the same care center one of the teachers came over and requested a moment of my time. She was quite prime and proper ( a little too un-bending in my opinion to be with little people all day long if you get my drift). She quietly told me that my son had made a loud statement about a lady's anatomy when this mother who was very well endowed had come to get her child. I was quite adamantly told that those types of statements were frowned upon at the school and would not be tolerated. I just looked at her and said, "Beth, do you really believe that at home my husband and I teach our son that those bold announcements are both polite and acceptable? Really? Am I hearing your message correctly? Because if I am I want to erase that pre-conceived notion from your head and assure you that he would be quickly censored and asked to give an apology to the subject of his statement." She just looked down her nose at me with the most aghast expression on her face.
Another time was during a summer daycare situation. He was in an inaugural program at his elementary school and had decided to see if he could toss his freshly crafted playdoh up to the high ceiling of the auditorium/general assembly room. And guess what?? He could! And it stuck! That action prompted a call from the principal herself. Now what you need to understand here is that our student was not one of her honor program students -- thus she didn't really have the time nor the inclination to have anything to do with him. In a voice dripping with pure condescention she explained that this behavior was simply not allowed and punishment would follow. The janitor was able by way of a very tall ladder to clean the goo off the tiles, leaving just a slight stain that would not call attention to itself if you didn't know it existed. I just knew that pitching arm would be tested one day and prove its true potential -- 'course I couldn't tell her that!! And, yes, my son received discipline at home and at school (even though we laughed and shook our heads once again at the colorful antics of an active young boy).
These are just three of the many, many stories that filled our youngster's life. As you can imagine those years were an unending stream of trials and triumphs.... lectures and hugs. What a kid.
While the child grew up the general greeting I received at work was not "How are you?" or "Good Morning!"...it was "We want another story!" and ""What happened yesterday??". Our son had a knack for finding himself as the poster child for behavior that all other mothers loved to hear about (and were secretly thrilled that it was NOT their child!!!). I laughed along with the rest of them. Couldn't really do much else...and heck, it made life interesting and most of his scrapes were funny (at least after the shock wore off).
Some of my favorites:
Soon after his enrollment in a very well known and hallowed child care program in our community he decided to test his balance. He climbed up on a little wooden chair to see if he could stand on the top. Alas, he could not and four stitches ensued.
As we all know children at the age of 3 or 4 tend to say what they think or feel. They are curious and blunt and make verbal observations without any qualms at all. One afternoon when I picked him up at the same care center one of the teachers came over and requested a moment of my time. She was quite prime and proper ( a little too un-bending in my opinion to be with little people all day long if you get my drift). She quietly told me that my son had made a loud statement about a lady's anatomy when this mother who was very well endowed had come to get her child. I was quite adamantly told that those types of statements were frowned upon at the school and would not be tolerated. I just looked at her and said, "Beth, do you really believe that at home my husband and I teach our son that those bold announcements are both polite and acceptable? Really? Am I hearing your message correctly? Because if I am I want to erase that pre-conceived notion from your head and assure you that he would be quickly censored and asked to give an apology to the subject of his statement." She just looked down her nose at me with the most aghast expression on her face.
Another time was during a summer daycare situation. He was in an inaugural program at his elementary school and had decided to see if he could toss his freshly crafted playdoh up to the high ceiling of the auditorium/general assembly room. And guess what?? He could! And it stuck! That action prompted a call from the principal herself. Now what you need to understand here is that our student was not one of her honor program students -- thus she didn't really have the time nor the inclination to have anything to do with him. In a voice dripping with pure condescention she explained that this behavior was simply not allowed and punishment would follow. The janitor was able by way of a very tall ladder to clean the goo off the tiles, leaving just a slight stain that would not call attention to itself if you didn't know it existed. I just knew that pitching arm would be tested one day and prove its true potential -- 'course I couldn't tell her that!! And, yes, my son received discipline at home and at school (even though we laughed and shook our heads once again at the colorful antics of an active young boy).
These are just three of the many, many stories that filled our youngster's life. As you can imagine those years were an unending stream of trials and triumphs.... lectures and hugs. What a kid.
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