Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Our Two Boys...A Mama's View
The next two posts are all about our two boys, Patrick and Chase. These two kiddos are absolute opposites in every way possible and I love that about them. Because this blog serves as a scrapbook I wanted to talk about each of them separately as I have experienced them through the years thus far. Their ways are different but my love is the same. Hope you enjoy a glimpse into my view of our two boys.
Our first born, Patrick Randall
Patrick was born mid April just a few days before Easter and just three days after I accepted Jesus Christ as Lord of my life. Oh, how different things would have been. What a blessing it was to bring a new life into this world under a whole new view based on a whole new set of priorities and values. Timing was perfect and I was ready to be a mama! Randy and I decided to not know the gender of our first born and we were both convinced we were having a girl!! HaHaHa. No, it was NOT funny when he came as a HE...not to me anyway. Randy was thrilled!! I, on the other hand, was mad at the world for about 24 hrs then of course I was forever in love.
Patrick aka "Patch" definitely has a first born nature. He is calm and laid back and has been since birth. He is independent and has a mind of his own...you will not change his mind...he knows all things! He is a sweet boy, very thoughtful and gets his feelings hurt easily. He is generous to a fault. Last Christmas after opening his three presents from Santa, he put one aside (a $45 power ranger helmet, by the way, that "Santa" had to go all over to find because every store was sold out and he just happened to find one on the very top shelf behind other toys at the last minute!) He had asked Santa to bring this gift for his cousin...not for him. We didn't have a clue because Patrick is also very secretive. He has inner thoughts he shares with no one until the time is right. This way no one can interfere with his plans until it is too late. See, we tried to explain to him that Santa spent a lot of money on that gift and he should keep it for himself. "Nope, I got it for Jayden and Santa doesn't care or he wouldn't have brought it." Oh, well...Jayden got a power ranger helmet!
Patrick is very giving. If someone brings him something...he has to also give something in return. This is OK until he starts going through my jewelry because he needs a gift for a girl. Yes, he has tried giving away my diamond earrings and my class ring! He is also very observant. He pays attention to detail and this is one trait I definitely want him to keep. This causes him to be a perfectionist but also he notices the small things, like when I get a pedicure or a new shirt. Seriously, he is genuinely happy when I get new stuff and comments on it. He is usually the one who picks out my nail color! He loves to color and draw. He is good at it because he is so detailed.
Patch also likes things to be clean, especially bathrooms. Sometime during our first t-ball game this year, Patrick went missing. We looked everywhere and finally I found him hiding ; his pants were wet. Yes, my 6 yr old peed in his pants. I was shocked because he never had accidents even at 3! I asked "Patch... baby...why did you pee in your pants?" His response.." Mommy, I looked and looked and looked and could not find a clean bathroom anywhere ...so...I had to pee in my pants." He was serious as a heart attack and could have cared less that he now had wet pants...nope...he walked right out to the field and finished the game. From then on, he used the bathroom before leaving home. And yes, I explained to him that he stands up, but that did not matter to him. "Those bathrooms are gross" he said.
On the other hand, he loves to dig in the dirt and pull bark off trees...he has done this for hours! He is fascinated with nature...bugs, worms, birds, frogs, lizards, flowers, rocks, stars, moon, sun, grass, etc., etc. He asks a thousand questions that I usually have to google to answer. He values all life! This child will pitch a fit ( I have seen this many times) if you even think about killing any living creature, even spiders and ants! We kill nothing! Well, when he is around, we kill nothing. I'll squish a spider in a split second and smile about it.
Patrick decided he wanted to try soccer, basketball, and t-ball this year and yes, we did all three. He wanted to quit all three after 2 wks in but we forced him to finish what he started. He hated all of it. We got our soccer sign up in the mail a few days ago and I asked.." Patrick, do you want to play soccer, basketball, or t-ball this year? You can pick just one if you want." He responded with " Uh, mommy, I don't want to play sports this year." I said " OK, well what do you want to do, want to take art or play piano?' He said "Uh, no mommy, I think I just want to be one of those people who don't do anything." Well then, OK...on to other things. He makes me laugh because he knows what he wants, he doesn't flinch! There is no talking this kid into anything.
Patrick is not a very affectionate child to anyone other than his mommy and daddy. His Nanny will offer money to get a hug! He doesn't give out hugs freely and I have never seen him kiss anyone but me and his daddy. He is very modest and doesn't like to bring attention to himself. He will not have anything to do with strangers or even people he somewhat knows. He is very cautious and if there is ever a fire...don't worry about Patrick...he will be the first outside! He takes no chances on safety and he watches his little brother better than I do. He doesn't have any favorite toys and never has really. He takes very good care of his things and keeps anything important to him in a safe place. He has a safe, a treasure box and a drawer full of special things. I have a mason jar full of things he has picked up for me in various places. The jar has rocks, feathers, a milk jug ring, pony tail holders, two nails twisted to form a cross, sequins, beads, single earrings, scraps of paper, marbles, etc., etc. He started bringing me "gifts" when he was 2, he would find these things throughout his day at daycare and for the first year I threw the "gifts" away. I know, I know, I should have kept them all but I didn't until one day. Patrick came home and as soon as we walked in he quickly took his shoes off and handed me the prettiest 2 pebbles. I said "why are they in your shoes?" I'll never forget it..he said " because the teacher said I couldn't put pebbles in my pockets anymore, so I put these in my shoes...for you." That sweet 3 yr old boy had walked around all day with two pebbles in his shoe that he had picked out for his mama. From that day on, I have saved everything he brings me but guess what? He rarely brings me things now but I love, love, love getting that mason jar out of the cabinet and looking at all my "gifts"!
This is our first born. This is Patrick. We couldn't possibly love him more!
Patrick aka "Patch" definitely has a first born nature. He is calm and laid back and has been since birth. He is independent and has a mind of his own...you will not change his mind...he knows all things! He is a sweet boy, very thoughtful and gets his feelings hurt easily. He is generous to a fault. Last Christmas after opening his three presents from Santa, he put one aside (a $45 power ranger helmet, by the way, that "Santa" had to go all over to find because every store was sold out and he just happened to find one on the very top shelf behind other toys at the last minute!) He had asked Santa to bring this gift for his cousin...not for him. We didn't have a clue because Patrick is also very secretive. He has inner thoughts he shares with no one until the time is right. This way no one can interfere with his plans until it is too late. See, we tried to explain to him that Santa spent a lot of money on that gift and he should keep it for himself. "Nope, I got it for Jayden and Santa doesn't care or he wouldn't have brought it." Oh, well...Jayden got a power ranger helmet!
Patrick is very giving. If someone brings him something...he has to also give something in return. This is OK until he starts going through my jewelry because he needs a gift for a girl. Yes, he has tried giving away my diamond earrings and my class ring! He is also very observant. He pays attention to detail and this is one trait I definitely want him to keep. This causes him to be a perfectionist but also he notices the small things, like when I get a pedicure or a new shirt. Seriously, he is genuinely happy when I get new stuff and comments on it. He is usually the one who picks out my nail color! He loves to color and draw. He is good at it because he is so detailed.
Patch also likes things to be clean, especially bathrooms. Sometime during our first t-ball game this year, Patrick went missing. We looked everywhere and finally I found him hiding ; his pants were wet. Yes, my 6 yr old peed in his pants. I was shocked because he never had accidents even at 3! I asked "Patch... baby...why did you pee in your pants?" His response.." Mommy, I looked and looked and looked and could not find a clean bathroom anywhere ...so...I had to pee in my pants." He was serious as a heart attack and could have cared less that he now had wet pants...nope...he walked right out to the field and finished the game. From then on, he used the bathroom before leaving home. And yes, I explained to him that he stands up, but that did not matter to him. "Those bathrooms are gross" he said.
On the other hand, he loves to dig in the dirt and pull bark off trees...he has done this for hours! He is fascinated with nature...bugs, worms, birds, frogs, lizards, flowers, rocks, stars, moon, sun, grass, etc., etc. He asks a thousand questions that I usually have to google to answer. He values all life! This child will pitch a fit ( I have seen this many times) if you even think about killing any living creature, even spiders and ants! We kill nothing! Well, when he is around, we kill nothing. I'll squish a spider in a split second and smile about it.
Patrick decided he wanted to try soccer, basketball, and t-ball this year and yes, we did all three. He wanted to quit all three after 2 wks in but we forced him to finish what he started. He hated all of it. We got our soccer sign up in the mail a few days ago and I asked.." Patrick, do you want to play soccer, basketball, or t-ball this year? You can pick just one if you want." He responded with " Uh, mommy, I don't want to play sports this year." I said " OK, well what do you want to do, want to take art or play piano?' He said "Uh, no mommy, I think I just want to be one of those people who don't do anything." Well then, OK...on to other things. He makes me laugh because he knows what he wants, he doesn't flinch! There is no talking this kid into anything.
Patrick is not a very affectionate child to anyone other than his mommy and daddy. His Nanny will offer money to get a hug! He doesn't give out hugs freely and I have never seen him kiss anyone but me and his daddy. He is very modest and doesn't like to bring attention to himself. He will not have anything to do with strangers or even people he somewhat knows. He is very cautious and if there is ever a fire...don't worry about Patrick...he will be the first outside! He takes no chances on safety and he watches his little brother better than I do. He doesn't have any favorite toys and never has really. He takes very good care of his things and keeps anything important to him in a safe place. He has a safe, a treasure box and a drawer full of special things. I have a mason jar full of things he has picked up for me in various places. The jar has rocks, feathers, a milk jug ring, pony tail holders, two nails twisted to form a cross, sequins, beads, single earrings, scraps of paper, marbles, etc., etc. He started bringing me "gifts" when he was 2, he would find these things throughout his day at daycare and for the first year I threw the "gifts" away. I know, I know, I should have kept them all but I didn't until one day. Patrick came home and as soon as we walked in he quickly took his shoes off and handed me the prettiest 2 pebbles. I said "why are they in your shoes?" I'll never forget it..he said " because the teacher said I couldn't put pebbles in my pockets anymore, so I put these in my shoes...for you." That sweet 3 yr old boy had walked around all day with two pebbles in his shoe that he had picked out for his mama. From that day on, I have saved everything he brings me but guess what? He rarely brings me things now but I love, love, love getting that mason jar out of the cabinet and looking at all my "gifts"!
This is our first born. This is Patrick. We couldn't possibly love him more!
Our second born, Joseph Chase
Chase arrived on the first day of Sept. two weeks early and almost 9 lbs! Right from the start we knew Chase would be different. He was born with red hair and a temper to go with it! I once again was convinced he would be a she even though the sonogram clearly showed boy parts. I was in denial, I had cried for a week after I found out we were having another boy. But this time I was prepared and fell in love instantly!
Chase is completely the opposite of his big brother. You could reverse everything about Patrick...and voila...have Chase! Chase looks a lot like Patrick and they can share most clothes now but their ways are, oh, so different. Chase is a sneaky, brave, mischievous, funny, 100% boy! He loves balls of any kind and is tough as nails, he is fearless. He gets hurt all the time doing crazy stuff. He jumps off the couch but forgets about the table that is in front of the couch. He climbs to the top of the monkey bars and lets go. He swings upside down on the swing and lets go. He loves strangers! This is scary but he will give almost anyone a hug or kiss without bribery. He fights like a 6 yr old and is not intimidated by a 12 yr old. I watched my 10 yr old nephew pick on him for about 5 seconds then I waited and watched as Chase picked up a bat and chased that 10 yr old all over the place. I let it go for about 5 minutes knowing the older one could out run the younger then I took the bat away. That nephew now completely respects Chase in a new way. Chase's first sentence was "HE HIT ME!" talking about Patrick and acting as if 'how dare he'.
Chase was a terrible baby, he had colic for 4 months! He cried almost every night from 9p-2a from the day after we brought him home until Dec.10....yes, I remember it clearly. Colic is not for the weak and no, your baby doesn't have colic if he is "fussy". Believe me, fussy is great...colic is horror!! I seriously could relate to moms that harm their children, thank God I didn't hurt him but it took all I had to keep from it and I had to break down and tell the doctor that before he would help me. He tried, but nothing took it away. It was BAD! So, from the beginning Chase was different.This child has a sense of humor and uses it often...to his advantage. He has so many different faces and voices he uses to match his mood. He picks things up easily and can imitate others well. After he spends the day with his friend, Cash, he talks just like him for days, on purpose! He says, "My talk like Cash!" He thinks it's funny and so do we.
We have to watch Chase like a hawk. I think he plans his next adventure before finishing the first. We were outside one day recently and I darted in to grab my cell phone and came right back out. He was behind me on the way in but apparently got side tracked in the laundry room. I came out and saw him walking towards our koi pond with something in his hand. As I got closer, he stopped on the bridge and held out his hand. OMG! He had a full scoop of Gain washing powders, slowly tilting his hand toward the pond. I screamed, "NO, NO, NO". Staring right at me with a look that says " you are there, I am here..whatcha gonna do?"..he dumped the WHOLE scoop in the pond and shyly smiled. I wore his butt out! I mean, I beat that child! We have 20 fish, some are 16 inches long! He cried, he did. Then said " mommy, it mells good." then he ran to play. Randy had to come home from work to drain 1200 gallons of water and wait to see if any fish were gonna die. They didn't. We had bubbles for days and the backyard did 'mell' good.
Chase destroys all things and eats all things. He rips pages out of books ( this causes Patrick to go ballistic) and he eats the eraser off every pencil he comes across. He breaks every crayon in half and says "see, we have two" and he doesn't like order...he destroys order! He can sniff out candy or gum within a mile radius. Doesn't matter where we hide it, Chase will eventually find it and eat it. This is a good thing at supper time, he will try anything and usually likes it.
Chase still doesn't sleep through the night. He is almost 3 and I can probably count on 2 hands how many times he has slept straight through the night. We have tried it all and will try anything else anyone suggests. He goes to sleep in his bed and does so easily but he always wakes up by 3 a.m. In the beginning, we would check on him, settle him back in and he would go back to sleep only for another hour or so then back awake screaming out. We would do this over and over. Then we ignored him...that lasted a total of one hour...no sleep for anyone! Now that he is in a toddler bed, when he screams out for us we simply say "come on". He crawls in the bed with us but he is back awake in less than an hour most nights. We pat him and say its OK...off to sleep we go. I have no idea why he does this and I really don't care at this point. Eventually he will grow out of it, we hope!
Chase is very independent and wants to do whatever it is you are doing. I have posted a picture I took of him imitating his Paw Paw smoking a cigar. He had found a piece of Lincoln logs and we were all outside, my Dad was smoking a cigar and the next thing we knew Chase was imitating him with the Lincoln log! This was less than one week before my Dad passed and I remember my Dad laughing and saying "I don't know if we should be laughing...I am proud he wants to be like me but I hope he doesn't pick up smoking from me". We laughed so hard watching Chase trying to be like Paw Paw and Chase was in his own world oblivious to anyone around him. He was concentrating so hard on holding his hands right and blowing smoke. I snapped a few pictures with my phone and I am so glad I did! Chase will most likely remember nothing about his Paw Paw but the picture is worth a thousand words!
Chase is completely the opposite of his big brother. You could reverse everything about Patrick...and voila...have Chase! Chase looks a lot like Patrick and they can share most clothes now but their ways are, oh, so different. Chase is a sneaky, brave, mischievous, funny, 100% boy! He loves balls of any kind and is tough as nails, he is fearless. He gets hurt all the time doing crazy stuff. He jumps off the couch but forgets about the table that is in front of the couch. He climbs to the top of the monkey bars and lets go. He swings upside down on the swing and lets go. He loves strangers! This is scary but he will give almost anyone a hug or kiss without bribery. He fights like a 6 yr old and is not intimidated by a 12 yr old. I watched my 10 yr old nephew pick on him for about 5 seconds then I waited and watched as Chase picked up a bat and chased that 10 yr old all over the place. I let it go for about 5 minutes knowing the older one could out run the younger then I took the bat away. That nephew now completely respects Chase in a new way. Chase's first sentence was "HE HIT ME!" talking about Patrick and acting as if 'how dare he'.
Chase was a terrible baby, he had colic for 4 months! He cried almost every night from 9p-2a from the day after we brought him home until Dec.10....yes, I remember it clearly. Colic is not for the weak and no, your baby doesn't have colic if he is "fussy". Believe me, fussy is great...colic is horror!! I seriously could relate to moms that harm their children, thank God I didn't hurt him but it took all I had to keep from it and I had to break down and tell the doctor that before he would help me. He tried, but nothing took it away. It was BAD! So, from the beginning Chase was different.This child has a sense of humor and uses it often...to his advantage. He has so many different faces and voices he uses to match his mood. He picks things up easily and can imitate others well. After he spends the day with his friend, Cash, he talks just like him for days, on purpose! He says, "My talk like Cash!" He thinks it's funny and so do we.
We have to watch Chase like a hawk. I think he plans his next adventure before finishing the first. We were outside one day recently and I darted in to grab my cell phone and came right back out. He was behind me on the way in but apparently got side tracked in the laundry room. I came out and saw him walking towards our koi pond with something in his hand. As I got closer, he stopped on the bridge and held out his hand. OMG! He had a full scoop of Gain washing powders, slowly tilting his hand toward the pond. I screamed, "NO, NO, NO". Staring right at me with a look that says " you are there, I am here..whatcha gonna do?"..he dumped the WHOLE scoop in the pond and shyly smiled. I wore his butt out! I mean, I beat that child! We have 20 fish, some are 16 inches long! He cried, he did. Then said " mommy, it mells good." then he ran to play. Randy had to come home from work to drain 1200 gallons of water and wait to see if any fish were gonna die. They didn't. We had bubbles for days and the backyard did 'mell' good.
Chase destroys all things and eats all things. He rips pages out of books ( this causes Patrick to go ballistic) and he eats the eraser off every pencil he comes across. He breaks every crayon in half and says "see, we have two" and he doesn't like order...he destroys order! He can sniff out candy or gum within a mile radius. Doesn't matter where we hide it, Chase will eventually find it and eat it. This is a good thing at supper time, he will try anything and usually likes it.
Chase still doesn't sleep through the night. He is almost 3 and I can probably count on 2 hands how many times he has slept straight through the night. We have tried it all and will try anything else anyone suggests. He goes to sleep in his bed and does so easily but he always wakes up by 3 a.m. In the beginning, we would check on him, settle him back in and he would go back to sleep only for another hour or so then back awake screaming out. We would do this over and over. Then we ignored him...that lasted a total of one hour...no sleep for anyone! Now that he is in a toddler bed, when he screams out for us we simply say "come on". He crawls in the bed with us but he is back awake in less than an hour most nights. We pat him and say its OK...off to sleep we go. I have no idea why he does this and I really don't care at this point. Eventually he will grow out of it, we hope!
Chase is very independent and wants to do whatever it is you are doing. I have posted a picture I took of him imitating his Paw Paw smoking a cigar. He had found a piece of Lincoln logs and we were all outside, my Dad was smoking a cigar and the next thing we knew Chase was imitating him with the Lincoln log! This was less than one week before my Dad passed and I remember my Dad laughing and saying "I don't know if we should be laughing...I am proud he wants to be like me but I hope he doesn't pick up smoking from me". We laughed so hard watching Chase trying to be like Paw Paw and Chase was in his own world oblivious to anyone around him. He was concentrating so hard on holding his hands right and blowing smoke. I snapped a few pictures with my phone and I am so glad I did! Chase will most likely remember nothing about his Paw Paw but the picture is worth a thousand words!
This is our second born. This is Chase. We couldn't possibly love him more!
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