15 Random Facts About Nate

My last blog listed 15 random facts about Andrew, my oldest...

Now it's Nate's turn:

1. I had given up on getting pregnant when we conceived Nate.
   
2. Nate's whole name is Nathaniel Cooper Jones. We got "Cooper" from Matt's former car- a little, red Mini Cooper.
3. Nate was not an easy baby. He cried a lot! A very vocal little guy.
4. Nate is still very vocal.
5. He is small in stature but big in attitude, strength, and gumption.
6. When he started walking, he was the same height as most of the bottoms of our window sills. He chewed the plaster off the edges of the window sills.
7. Nate is such an affectionate kid. He gives me kisses and hugs all the time.
8. He is very independent. Independent to a fault, often times. He does NOT like help doing anything and gets angry if someone offers to help him. He also gets extremely frustrated if he can't do something on his own. He gets this from his Mommy, by the way.
   
9. Nathaniel ate 'possum poop when he was about a year and a half. He found it in the back yard and put it in his mouth. I found him making a funny face, chewing on what I initially thought was mud. I called Poison Control and our doctor. He was fine.
10. He loves to be tickled.
    
11. Nate has always been a little snuggler. I love it!
12. He ought to be in gymnastics... he's very agile and has great body control. He refuses to take gymnastics, though. I hope he changes his mind some day.
13. My little 4-year old has sparkly eyes and it's easy to see when he is doing something naughty because of those little sparkles.
14. This must be some mutant gene which has skipped a few generations, but he loves to clean! Even when he was a baby, he would get obsessed by a wayward fishie cracker if one happened to fall from his highchair tray. His favorite item is his vacuum cleaner and he loves to point out cleaning products on commercials and announce that he is going to get that when he "gets bigger".
15. Nathaniel tries so hard to be big like his big "Bubba". He likes to "read" and "spell" things for us. Everything is spelled: mptyanpte (or some variation of those letters).

I thank You so much for this little guy, Lord. I didn't think we'd ever be blessed with another child and now I know You were waiting for this special boy to be a part of our family. He wasn't easy... still isn't... but all the things that make him difficult are also the things that make him so lovable. I love his snuggles, hugs, and kisses. Thank You for giving me someone who loves affection as much as I do.

Take his independent spirit and his quick temper and bring them under Your control. Teach him to yeild to You and to learn early to rely on You. At the same time, I know You made him with these unique characteristics for a purpose. Please use him for Your purpose, use his independent, feisty spirit for Your glory.

I love my little Nator-Gator.

15 Random Facts About Andrew

I stole this idea from my friend, Sarah. She has written one of these for each of her kids (at least I think... she has been blessed with a lot of kids). :D

1. Andrew was an easy baby: He cried only when he needed to. He slept through the night at eight weeks old.

2. He never crawled. From day one, he wanted to walk. He started walking at 9 months and when he fell, he'd only fall forward... like a tree. He had lots of bumps on his forehead.

3. Andrew thinks. His brain is always mulling over something and he has a tendency to get obsessed with what he is thinking about until he satisfies his curiosity or solves his problem.

4. It seemed he would never learn to talk. When he finally did start talking at almost three, he spoke in sentences and has not stopped talking since.

5. Andrew loves science and anything science-related.

6. His room is a museum. He calls it his museum and even has a sign (made by his Auntie Sheena) for his museum door. He has fossils, stones of all kinds, plant life, Egyptian artifacts, arrowheads, coins and paper currency from lots of different countries, shells, and much more in his museum. If you visit our house, you are sure to get a guided tour.

7. My guy is a great reader!

8. His little brother calls him "Bubba".

9. Andrew hates getting his hair cut.

10. He doesn't know how to ride a bike and has no interest in learning.

11. By some fluke, Andrew is a big guy! He's the second tallest in his class and people usually think he is at least a year older than he is.

12. Though he is super smart, Andrew is a little absent-minded and spacey. It's usually funny but can also be frustrating!

13. Andrew has an amazing memory! He remembers things he sees, hears, reads, and does. He even recognizes songs that he's only heard once or twice. Unlike his Mommy, he is very observant.

14. He eats a lot.

15. Andrew has a mature sense of humor. He says witty things that often catch me off-guard and make me laugh.

I love my Andrew. I love his kind and gentle spirit. In so many ways, he is like his Daddy. In some ways, he is like me. In a few ways, he is like his name-sake... Uncle Andrew. In every other way, he is like nobody else I know.

I pray he will grow to love and know the Lord. I pray my thinker will evaluate God's Word and find it to be the Truth. It's my prayer that his kind and gentle spirit will show God's love to those around him. I thank God for his health and that he is a part of our family. My Andrew is a special guy... a little quirky but amazing! Lord, please use these traits for Your glory.

Playing Tooth Fairy

Andrew lost his FIRST tooth on Tuesday. That's the tooth in his hand. He was so excited, he even let me take pictures of him sporting his newly-gapped smile!

My Boy is Growing Up... That means I Must Be Too

I had fun being the tooth fairy. It was fun to carry on a tradition I enjoyed as a child. Something occurred to me that night as I got take part in such an important milestone in Andrew's life. It was sort of an epiphany, I guess...

I've been a Mommy for over six years but often don't feel like much of a grown-up, myself. There are moments, however, in my Mommyhood when I feel like a grown-up... like a parent. For example, the first time I had to fight the school traffic jam in order to drop my son off at school~ it felt like such a grown-up thing to do.

Playing Tooth Fairy made me feel like that too. As I quietly exchanged my son's tooth for a 1974 Silver Dollar, I felt mature. I felt responsible. I felt like a parent. I felt like MY parents! I think those are the times when I truly feel grown-up... when I find myself doing some of the things my own parents did for me.

Now, before you call CPS and report me as an admittedly irresponsible parent (except for the times when I get to fight school traffic or get to be the Tooth Fairy), let me explain that I am a grown-up and I usually act like one. I just don't usually feel like one. I like it that way.

Andrew was pretending to be asleep for this picture.

Ha ha... I don't think the Tooth Fairy will fall for that.