Wordless Wednesday- The Small Dude Gets in the Game
He may have only just turned four, but the eye black, baseball pants, and arm band show the small dude’s serious baseball side.
Four Years Ago Today - My Sweet Boy Was Born
His small hand reaches out to me, even as he sleeps. Sometimes he rests his palm on my shoulder….occasionally he wraps his fingers in my hair.
He just has to know I am there. And I love that. In fact, I dread the day that he no longer wants me to snuggle.
Four years ago today, I laughed him into this world. Literally.
I pushed one time, Dr. Cartwright made me laugh and Cooper came flying out. That wonderful doctor even convinced me to grab my sweet guy under the shoulders and pull him the rest of the way out.
It was spectacular.
I am convinced the way he was born - via laughter - has shaped the happy little guy he is today.
And on this day, your birthday, I celebrate you.
My sweet, small dude,
Every day I am amazed by you. You illuminate every room you enter - refusing to be intimidated by anyone or anything. You aim that blue-eyed gaze at kids and adults, making friends, garnering smiles.
From the moment you entered my life, you have made me better. From the sporadic, “Mommy? I love you’s” that you sprinkle throughout every day, to your love of holding my hand, I am charmed by you.
If your daddy had written a letter to God before you were born describing the little man he wanted in his life, you match it perfectly. You are kind - giving hugs and love freely. You laugh and joke easily. Every day as he comes home, “Daddy, can we play baseball?”. You would rather watch SportsCenter than cartoons and go page-by-page through Sports Illustrated when it arrives every Wednesday.
My sweet boy - I hope you never outgrow that special little something that makes you sparkle.
Thank you for the privilege of being your Mommy.
I love you my little buddy.
Love, Mommy
Laughing all the way
Three years ago today, I laughed Cooper out.
Meaning - I was in labor, my doctor made me laugh after one push and Coop came flying out - past his shoulders.
So, my Doctor looked at me and said, “Pull him out!”
(Picture me AGHAST!) “No, you pull him out - that is YOUR job!”
“Danielle. Seriously. PULL. HIM. OUT. NOW!”
And so I did…..
And he has been making me smile ever since.
My small dude came out with blond hair and still has it! He has been a little man child since the first moment I held him - teeth at 3 months, crawled at 5 months, WALKED (with NO help) at 7 months and has been speaking in full sentences for over a year.
He is a blond, blue eyed, devlish little guy - and he breaks my heart a little every day.
He is a lover, a destructible, his sister’s favorite, his daddy’s dream and my sweet little guy.
Every day he spontaneously says, “Mommy???” pause “I love you”. Every night he begs for more ‘Kishes and hugs!!”
So, this is my 3rd birthday note to my buddy.
Dear Coop (Coopy, Small Dude, Handsome, Diggity),
I have loved you forever. I will love you forever.
I have only had three short years with you - and yet, I know you are such a special little guy. You were laughed into this world - and that has shaped your personality. You are social - an entertainer just like your daddy.
You wake me every morning with a ball, bat and glove in your arms, “Mommy, you pway baseball?” And the expectant look on your face almost makes me cry - you want that play time so badly. Baseball is your daddy’s dream and you are fulfilling it in ways large and small.
My dream was for you to be a lover - and you are. I can never get enough of your hugs and kishes.
You know how to make me laugh, you are protective of your sister, you are sweet natured and tough. It is my true joy to be by your side as you grow. Just try not to do it too fast.
I love you, my buddy.
Love, Mommy
P.S. You keep working on your swing! I think Daddy has you pegged for the 2024 draft!
Wordless Wednesday - JUMP!
The only thing missing is the sound of Coop’s splash, the pure joy on his face and the begging of ‘do it a-gin’!
Destructible
You just might have one: a child that gets in TO EVERYTHING.
I do. And , yet, I didn’t recognize this as a pattern. Until today.
His name: Cooper. His M.O.: coloring on anything and everything, his own skin included. He has also been known to break toys, dig into his big sister’s makeup, throw anything vaguely resembling a ball and take the stuffing out of couch cushions.
However, after spending 20 minutes getting marker off the couch this morning and a good hour on my hands and knees coaxing fluorescent orange marker out of my carpet this afternoon, I am confident this is a permanent part of his personality and am none too happy about it.
His AKA: The Destructible.
Sure, he’s cute. Or, he is sometimes. maybe that is part of the problem. The sweet face hides the Destructible within.
It is getting to the point that I am afraid to go to the bathroom lest he discover a Sharpie (Heaven forbid! I think I have hidden them all at a girlfriend’s urging).
Admittedly, he always fesses up, but still, I’ve become a slave to white cloth and water. If you ask him where he is supposed to color/draw/write, he will throw up his tiny little hands and yell, “On pay-purr!” with such conviction you think there is an invisible elf who is the true culprit.
I think this may be payback. I could never truly empathize when a mom friend told horror stories about a devious child.
Hmmm…and now I have one. Interesting.
Stop what you are doing
So…you know my kiddos are a bit under the weather, yes?
And you know I love to snuggle them.
Tonight I put the small people to bed with every intention of digging into my massive ‘to-do’ list. But as I am working in my completely silent house, I hear a small noise. And then a series of small noises. And then, this is what I see.
He spoke softly, so I don’t know if you heard, but he ‘doesn’t feel so good’. I bet you heard the cough though.
So, since I can’t help but fall for that sweet face, I am at his beck and call - which means I am at a stopping point now.
Good night friends.
Who knew?
Within the long list of things I clearly do not know about my children is a this:
It is a little something Cooper decided to recite for me today.
Delaney can take all the credit for being a good teacher.
