Lovelies in my Life : Dear Boys...

Dear Parker,

You're such a amazing kid, an awesome big brother. I'm lucky to have you leading this pack of little men cause you're one to look up to. You're kind hearted and sincere. You take care of people and like to make sure they're happy. You're laid back and chill, so you provide relief for mom and dad when your nutty bros are running circles around us. You patiently teach Elliot good manners by demonstrating them yourself and I feel so beam-y when I hear you boys saying your "please" and "thank you's" to each other. Raising gentleman is high on my list of priorities.

You're doing well in school, the most improved in your class! And I think you're a great little reader. We've been reading Roald Dahl together which reminds me so much of my childhood. You boys love those sweet stories too. You're back in soccer and will soon be swimming again, to prepare for our summer in the pool! I'd love for you to take piano but I have yet to convince you of that. You're not too willing to try new things and I have to just be comfortable with that. I'm willing to let you stick with the things that you feel you're good at and work on developing those. Sometimes stretching yourself thin is over rated, right?

Even though you're 7 now and you're our big kid, I'm amazed by how small you are. I notice it when I'm giving you a back rub, those tiny arms and shoulders, almost too fragile and breakable. It surprises me! I suppose it's no wonder that everyone's big brother has broken something or other. It's like you expect all this strength from a boy but they're as fragile as all those little girls I teach. I guess it's not until the teen years that we'll see muscle and strength? Anyway, senseless ramblings ...

You're awesome and I love you so much!

Dear Monty,

You're a tiny ball of fire and you light up everything as you fly through a room. But now, instead of scorching us if we're in your path, you're creating an incredible warmth in our hearts. I'm so thankful that you've matured into a really top notch little guy; that those long days of struggling with discipline have really shown their fruit now. We're seeing such a sweet, softer side of you, one that butters us up with hugs and cuddles. Best of all, you're much better at ignoring baby brothers annoying jabs (something Parker was so good at doing when he was in your position). A 2 year old really knows how to get under his older brother skin, doesn't he? You're better at keeping the peace and you've become a fast friend, especially with your cousin. You stick like glue to his side.

You're still working hard on your musical skills, moving on from the drums to a fascination with the guitar. Your passion for music is catching and little E is a fan, following closely in your footsteps and heading in a similar direction, clearly loving those drums!

At school you're learning your sight words now and you're recognizing words on your own, those like the days of the week! Cool huh? You're also copying your name and address down really nicely, after your teacher writes in on the board. You color in the lines and, though you don't enjoy art, you're very neat and your coloring is so pretty (or cool, if you prefer :).

You have an ear infection today, poor thing, and had a terrible night rolling around restlessly in our bed, squeezed between me and dad. We all had a real good go at the sicks this winter and apparently even a 4 year old can get an ear infection. It's been ages since we've had to deal with one.

Get better soon. I love you, my sweet, sweet thing.

Dear Elliot,

I'm thinking of allowing your hair to grow out ... get it all shaggy. We'll see how that turns out. You're a mini Monty and we see so many of the same characteristics in you as we do in him. You too are fearless and energetic, outgoing and loud. You make people laugh a lot, even complete strangers. You're just so goofy. You love movies, music, snacks, visits with family, and sweeties. The latter of which is our biggest struggle, I think, as it causes all sorts of tears. Darn that sweet tooth (and thanks a lot to Granna and Garthie, the sure reason why we are all doomed to have these obsessive hankerings! It must be genetic!).

Speaking of, you do not enjoy having your teeth brushed and for it to happen we must all howl a happy rendition of "We will, we will, brush you". That gets the job done in the end. You still love to sit on my hip and wind your little legs around me like a monkey. I love that! And I love your thighs ... your chubby little milky thighs. You're such a perfect size. I can still cradle you in my arms like a little baby and I don't think you mind at all.

You talk a lot! There are still times when I have no idea what you're saying but you are, most often, quite clear. It's as if you can turn the vocab on and off. While we were heading to the doctor this morning, you were talking about every little thing that popped into your head and you said, "Look mommy! Look at the birds in that tree." See? You're perfectly capable of full and complete sentences. I think you just get a kick out of speaking rubbish.

You have good little manners, which makes me so proud and you're quick to say you're sorry when you've done something wrong (which at the moment is sorta often). You love your babysitter Abby dearly, and you love jumping castles and peanut butter, jelly time (it's a song).

You're the bomb. I love you little boy!