Brighton turns 10!

Social media seemed to suggest that entering a new decade was a big deal.  I thought back to what I was doing New Year's Eve and at the start of the last decade...I was waiting for this little boy to make his way into the world and then enjoying life with a newborn.  Everything clicked with this delivery and adjustment to having a new baby (as opposed to the previous one, where the labor was difficult and we were so sick).  My time in the hospital with him felt like a vacation.  I just rested and read magazines and watched movies while I cuddled him and let Phil (and his Mom came down to help) take care of the 3 other little ones.  He was content and I learned that co-sleeping and nursing on demand was the best way to get a good night's sleep and have a happy baby so I was the most rested with him.  



Little did I know that my biggest baby, came with a personality to match.  I have shared before some regrets that I had in his young childhood.  I mistook his "energy" and difficulty following directions and obeying as naughtiness and not childishness and struggles (ADHD, speech, profound dyslexia which affecst a lot more than just his learning).  I think he is my child of grace...not because I was a grace giver but despite the challenges, he is my child of grace given.  He loves hugs, cuddles.  He says "I love you" more than any of my other kids.  He demands (seriously, demands) evening prayers, every night.  He is hot tempered but it is very short lived so his disposition overall is happy and content.  He is overwhelming and my most challenging child (well, Sawyer often ties LOL) but I look at who he is and how far he has come and how he has overcome my parenting short comings and I see a child of grace.

The many faces of B






Poor B, his birthday was not quite the bash that he had hoped for.  He had been sick the entire week leading up to his birthday and the day after his birthday everyone went up to Seattle so he didn't get the party he had hoped for.  He had coffee with Dad, lunch from Subway, we went to a movie in the afternoon, and Grammy and Grampy came for dinner.  I don't remember if we even sang Happy Birthday and we had no dessert.  I didn't take any actual birthday photos.  The boys sure got short changed this year.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New Boots

Image
Last week, was snowy and cold cold cold, then rainy.  I continued to work on getting the yard cleaned up.  I dug out the ponds and refilled the holes with dirt.  I loaded up rocks, pavers, and bricks.  I cleaned out the water features.  I collected the strawberry runners so I would have starts to plant.  I unloaded 2 loads of bark dust.  The children were a tremendous help.  They loaded an entire trailer of firewood all by themselves and then helped with another load of rocks and bricks.  I am amazed at how much there is to load and fix just in the yard alone.  It is a lot of work for the simple concept of "curb" appeal.   Waiting for the snow to melt so I can put down the bark dust. Even with two pairs of socks, my feet were freezing so I broke down and bought a pair of Muck Boots.  The funny thing is, 2 years ago, I really wanted to have a new pair of winter boots but I just couldn't justify paying so much money just to have ...
Read more

Then Came Dense Fog and the Thunderstorm

Image
Sunday, I woke up to a dense fog and smoke cover combination.  I think this is probably the densest fog I have ever been in. Before the sun came up, it was white.  Once it got lighter outside the smoke color showed through. On the porch, looking toward the swimming pool (North) but unable to see it or the goat barn or the walnut trees. On the porch, looking toward the barn, only able to see the garden before the parking area. Outside the window looking at the tree block, barely 30 feet away. I am not sure how I let Phil talk me into (trying) going to the store...but the fog was supposed to lift by 11:00 and we were scheduled to gather at the Rawie's for church and I needed ingredients to put together something for the potluck.  (We ended up having to cancel our homechurch.) Our mailbox, we couldn't see any cars, so we had to roll down the windows and listen.  I was already terrified at this point and didn't want to continue. After having to slam on his brakes multipl...
Read more

More Hats

Image
The Etsy shop is still a work in progress and unfortunately the name Over the Top is already taken.  I have been tossing around the names Tip Top and Whimsy.  I managed to get 7 hats made during the month of November.  I have a couple that I can put on Etsy when we are ready to list them and several Christmas hats made for the children.  I have been timing how long it takes me to make a hat and I am surprised (and not in a good way LOL) at the number of hours I spend.  A baby hat takes over 5-6 hours, a child's hat takes about 7-8 hours, and an adult hat 10 plus hours.  It takes even longer if I decide to tear out the stitching because it isn't looking the way I had imagined.  The more yarn variety I use, the longer it takes me to weave in the ends.  I usually spend over an hour just with a tapestry needle making all the ends secure.  Minimum wage plus materials puts the hats in the 50-80 dollar range.  Yikes!  I would never pay th...
Read more