Life On Other Planets...

Yup!  This is my first born snuggling with his mommy!  What a sweet moment!

It's the first morning of March Break... it is 6:05 a.m.  and I am awake.  What is wrong with this picture?  Sleeping is one of my favorite things to do and yet I am awake!

I love breaks from school.  I love hanging with the boys and relaxing.  It, of course comes with the bonus of loudness, fighting and teasing but I love the bits in there that remind me why I love being a mom.

We don't have big plans this break.  But all the little plans add up to a  nice break.  Today we  are going swimming at the Y and then having lunch at friends.  This evening we are going to celebrate Zachary's birthday (that was in January).  We are going to the new Lazer Tag place in town.  My boys are so excited, the big ones and the little ones!  We are just going with a couple of families and a couple of friends.  Then we will be going out to supper.

A bit of this and a bit of that and then it will be over.  I hope to finish a few books over the  break too.  Our yard needs a tidy up of all the things that were hiding in the snow.  It really does look like spring is here.  I can't believe it.  Usually there is always a dump of snow around now.

I feel like the boys are growing up too fast.  Yesterday while at school, a friend commented that Sammy was taller than me now.  What!  How did that happen?  Sammy was, of course, thrilled!  He said, "I feel taller!"  Cute!  He is a mix of sweet and sour still.  But how I love to be with him, if only to get bits of that sweetness a few times a day!  I love that kid!

I have warned him not to have kids, ever, though.  You know what they say, "Payback is a  Beep!"  I have a feeling the Good Lord is gonna bless him with a dozen moody girls!  lol  Actually, LOL... that would be so sweet!

I love watching the results of teaching for years.  I love getting to a door and the boys automatically hold it open, even Josh.  I love seeing the bits of gentlemen-ness in them come out.  Someday, some ladies are going to be so lucky.  I hope their parents are working hard on them too! :)

Sometimes I just stare at them.  I love looking at my boys knowing that somehow, through that incredible miracle, they are a bit of me.  I see myself in them.  It is a scary thing too, of course.  Sammy... is a  bit too much me.  That is why we fight and love so hard.  I love holding the boys hand, while they are in the front seat as I drive.  All of them oblige.  Sammy is too big to do so now.  Yesterday, I agreed to pick him up from school and take him to lunch.  I reached for his hand.  He scrunched up his nose..."No."  I said, "How about one minute?"  He gives me his wonderful Sammy smile/pout and said, "30 seconds."  It was the best 30 seconds of my day,  holding my little yet not so little anymore son's hand as he watched his clock and counted down.

Tyler, my big man with a bigger heart is growing up, being the teenager that he is.  Yet that heart of his is ready to apologize within minutes of being a turd.  I love that about him.  I love that he comes and lays down with me every morning.  He is such a wonderful boy.  I just love him!

Jordan... this child of mine is stuck right in the middle as is Max.  He is not a demanding child.  He loves drawing and playing his guitar.  He is a very thoughtful child.  He is always willing to do the errand no one else wants to.  He is also quite the gentleman. He is the one that gets out of the car and comes to help me put the groceries into the car.  I love this kid of mine.  He is his own person.

Ah, then there is my Max.  He isn't as quiet as he once was.  Nope.  I kinda miss having that quiet child. He is the child that has to say something to every situation whether it involves him or not.  He loves is addicted to the computer.  He loves hanging out at recess and being everyone's "bestie."  Max is growing up.  He is becoming a boy with his own thoughts and never ending opinions.  I love this kid!

Zach is my 8 year old with the desire to be 14.  He never lets being one of the youngest keep him from trying stuff.  He has a love for expensive clothes.  Where did he get this from??? (His Dad)!  He is not your typical kid that wants toys.  He wants clothes... preferably from Abercrombie.  He is so independent it is almost annoying.  He sets the bar so high that often his older brothers fall short!  Zach is one of my boys that I love watching live life.  He lives it to the fullest.  He is such a treat!  I love him to death!

Do I even need to go on about my Josh?  He is such a gift from God to me.  He loves me unconditionally.  Even when he gets mad at me and says, "I hate you"  (yes... the effects of having older siblings), he loves me as he is wanting to hate me! lol  I love this kid.  I love his love.  I am always hoping that I can love him back just as he needs.  He is a baby that never seems to grow up and yet he is a big boy in ways that are frightening!  Josh is my baby.  He will always be my baby.  I love him.  It's so simple.

This is why I love breaks.  I love being able to be with my boys.  I can't imagine it any other way.  They are like  creatures from another planet... one that is made up of boys and brothers.  It is a noisy space that is usually discombobulated, noisy, messy, noisy, physical and did I say noisy?  I am like the scientist that is allowed there... to observe, play referee, wipe soggy noses (that is what Josh calls it), try to teach new tricks, figure out what works and what doesn't.  I am one of the few people that is allowed in this place.

And yet, there are people that don't believe that there is life on other planets.  Hum... they haven't been to my "house."  I love the break that allows me to be keeper of the zoo full-time!

Happy March Break!