2011 Gratitude Challenge-Day 3

Day Three:

I know I know, this is a given, but I still must say it. Today I am dictating that I am grateful for being a mother. So, I am grateful for my children. 

Each of them is so wonderfully different. I don't know HOW it happened, but I also got four funny kids. I mean, seriously funny. Like they even make strangers laugh funny. Of course, Tucker could take his brand of funny to stage and be rich, but they are all witty and each have a great since of humor.

Wyatt:

He is my first born.  The one who taught me what it means to truly love someone. He is 16 now, and planning to go into the military. Honestly, I am not thrilled with that prospect, but I support him in it. He loves Ag class, Baseball, and the NFL team the Patriots. I only have two more years with him. Well, less than that. He graduates at 17 and will go right into boot-camp. He is also my most serious child, and the most quiet (most of the time). That is not saying that he is not fun loving, because he is, he is just a lot more stoic than the other three. He has been that way since the day he was born, and continues to analyze the world through deep thought and reflection. He has the most amazing eyes. You can't see it in this picture, but I'll add another one so you can. He has these silver streaks that look like lightning bolts through his eyes. 

Eleven months after my sweet Wyatt, there came Tucker:

Oh my, there is so much to say about 15 year old Tucker. I already told you he is split-your-gut hilarious. He is also very sensitive. I remember when he was born and we revealed his name, there were many nay-sayers. They thought it was a cruel name and that he would be made fun of. Well, the boy couldn't have a name that fits him any better. If he is made fun of he either lets it roll of his back, or makes the person regret ever speaking his name. He is always one of two extremes, either really sweet or really not. Mostly he is just sweet though. He has always been very affectionate and calls himself a "Momma's boy". When he was ~16 months old, he received vaccinations. Afterwards, his temperature soared to 108+. The doctors assure me this was "normal". In the months that followed, he began to drool and not make eye contact as much. His coordination began to change. I had never heard of autism or vaccine injury, and since the doctors assured me he was fine, I did not worry. However, a few years later he was diagnosed with pervasive development disorder and asperger's syndrome. This has caused Tuck some major struggles, especially as a teen, but he has fought back in true Tucker style and is doing excellent. He also has great eyes, that are so light that I can't hardly display them in a black and white/color picture. See? Those are the eyes of my grandfather & father he has. 

17 months behind Tucker, arrived Michaela (aka, Katie):

This child was born with a head of hair, that just developed into more hair and gorgeous curls. It's crazy, the older she gets, the more curly her hair gets. Anyhow, Michaela taught me what it is to have a girl child. Girls really are sugar and spice and everything nice. Don't get me wrong, this 13 year old girl has spunk and is blunt as the day is long...BUT, she is also sweet and kind and full of love for the world. She wants to compete in pageants, but her favorite hobby is hunting. Go figure that one out! She loves babies and children, and animals too (just like her Momma). She is a great cook and strives to one day be a lawyer. I believe she can do it, and will. She is an obedient child. She trips up sometimes, but not often. She aims to please her parents & God, but I promise she is not concerned with anyone else. She loves shoes...way too much. I fear for her income when she is older because of her shoe obsession. She feels about shoes the way I feel about puppies. She loves to dress up and get dirty. She also has some pretty cool eyes. I guess they are hazel, and they change color depending on what she wears. However, most of the time they are the exact same color as her hair. How that happened, I will never know. I did not modify this picture...I just removed the black & white over her eyes. This is truly how they look. People pay for contact to turn their eyes this color. Of course, she hates it just as much as she does her hair. Why oh why is it in female DNA to want to change what you're blessed with? 

Years came and years went...we got pregnant with twins, but lost them at 11 & 13 weeks. Then we got pregnant again with our precious baby Brody. Unfortunately, Brody's life was not for this world and he was born-still on May 28, 2005. We began to pursue adoption after his birth, and on August 4, 2005, we were blessed with another son.

Here, is sir Troy:

Like I said, Troy was a blessing to our family through adoption. I know God created him for us, and he fits in so well. He has a little turned up nose, just like my husband, and the same attitude. He is the most friendly child I have ever come across. He is also the most stubborn child! He puts the BULL in bullheaded. I pray I can help him to direct this in the right direction. Right now...well, I am sure some people think he is seldom disciplined, but that is not the case. We're working on it. 

He wants to talk to EVERYONE. No, seriously...EVERYONE! We laugh that he is a politician because he is literally shaking hands, introducing himself, and kissing babies everywhere we go. Okay, so maybe I have finally got him out of the habit of touching stranger's babies. He just couldn't understand how that was "off limits" but I finally succeeded. Well, for the most part. Sometimes he does it and then begs for forgiveness. This is the little guy who showed me that not all kids are food motivated. He couldn't care less about food or eating, most of the time. He is a chocoholic though. He hugs perfect strangers and those he knows alike. Anyone who he thinks needs a hug, gets one. Even the mechanic at Wal-Mart (that one was just last week, I wish I would have had a picture of his face). I would love to get him out of this habit, I think...but I don't want to squelch out how loving he is. Troy has the sweetest little face FULL of freckles. The other day I asked him how he gets so dirty so fast and he replied "my freckles are sticky".         

: )

So there you have it, my long-winded praise for today. I am so ever grateful that I was blessed with the chance to be a Mom.