HL, a General?

It all started a couple years ago, with his first set of army guys. Since then, HL has been increasingly interested in the military in general, wars in particular. We've read many children's books regarding this war or that (mostly the Civil and Revolutionary). Trips to the library always involve HL disappearing to ask the librarian for help, then reappearing with a stack of history books. First it was war in Roman times, then it was Greek. This last time we went to the library, he asked the librarian to help him find books on World War I and has been perusing them this past week or so. He even made a list of questions he wanted to learn about the war. On Thursday night, I volunteered at his school's book fair and earned a free item. I chose a strategic, role-play computer game about the Civil War as a Christmas present for my little war-enthusiast. Upon showing Hubby my acquisition, he joked "we're turning our kid into a General, you know." I took this as just the joke it was. That is, until HL started, the other night, to say his nightly prayer: "Thank you God for all that grows, Thank you for the sky's rainbows. Thank you for the stars that shine, Thank you for these friends of mine. Thank you for the moon and sun, Thank you, God, for all you've done"... ... to the tune of a military cadence! Perhaps we really ARE raising a General after all. **And much to my chagrin, it fits perfectly and now whenever I think of this prayer, it is ALWAYS in cadence in my mind.** (Thank you Aunt Retta for the prayer- he loves it.)

AW

For a couple weeks now, I have had the perfect word to describe AW on the tip of my tongue. Last night, it finally flew out of my mouth: Ebullient! adj 1. Zestfully enthusiastic. 2. Boiling or seeming to boil; bubbling.

AW's Love of life- Case in point

After watching Zula Patrol (excellent show, btw!), I asked AW what he had learned. His first reply referenced Mars and how there is rust on it. Then, I pressed for more info, wanting to know what he learned about Saturn: "I learned that its rings are soo beautiful, you can hardly stand it!" This is not long after coming in from the car where he was telling me that he loved me so much, he was going to explode with happiness. "I will explode love and hearts and Happy Halloween all over you, mommy!"

The Other Team?

Our Eldest started participating in a football pool recently and has a great time following the games and the progress of the pool. This week it caused an issue, though. He picked New England over my team the Broncos. Monday rolls around and we try to get him to wear his Bronco shirt. Nothing doing. He picked out a plain blue one for New England. Game time rolls around and we get to watch New England take apart my team. Great. He made sure to let me know every time New England had a good play... He cheered on New England, I rooted for the Broncos. "I say Denver you say Broncos, 'Denver,' 'PATRIOTS!'" To his credit, though, he's a New England fan because they are the Patriots, who fought for our rights long ago. So, what do you do when your son roots for the other team? You grin and bear it.... And, who wouldn't ;~)

HL the studious

Studying for the big final... Our Eldest has been having some trouble falling asleep at night so we allow him to read in his bed. Well, one night he was looking at his StarWars trivia book and couldn't think of the answers. So what does he do? Give up? Nah, he climbs down from his bed, gets His Brother's StarWars movie book and looks up the answers. That's my boy!

Lights out

Ever since I can remember, I have had great difficulty falling asleep. I vividly recall laying in bed as a little girl, my mind going a hundred miles an hour, skipping from one thought to another, escalating into a panic about the future. As an adult, I have learned to manage it by reading a book until my eyes refuse to remain open. But, I have never learned to actually prevent the issue, or fix it in any way. I just tolerate it. Now, I am having to watch my eldest start down that same sleepless path, and while I can deal with it in myself, it is killing me to see him struggle through it. At this point, fortunately, he doesn't seem to feel the panic I used to. But his brain does go non-stop just as mine did. And once a little scary thought does get in there, it grows and grows. Almost nightly he is turning on his light and reading- sometimes til well after ten- and often begs me to lay down with him so he can fall sleep. So far, it doesn't appear to be affecting his school or life; although it does catch up with him after several nights and then he falls asleep earlier. Oh, how I wish I could just wrap my arms around him each night and grant him instant, peaceful sleep!

Super Fantastic!

When asked how his day at preschool was, AW's usual response is "SUPER FANTASTIC", "WICKED AWESOME", or some other similar sentiment. You don't get any "fines", or "okays" out of this boy. This is one of the things I love so about him- he is most often very jubilant, he truly loves life. Some examples: A week or two ago, we took the boys to a free rock and mineral show at the local senior center. To us adults, it was interesting, but there really wasn't that much there. AW, however, had this to say: "Daddy, that rock show sure was great!" At the end of the movie "Evan Almighty", the command is given to "do the dance"- AW had me dancing for a good 25 mins. Just going to the store with him is often uplifting. I can honestly say that shopping is NOT something I enjoy, but with AW along, we end up pretending all sorts of things, and he is just tickled to be able to help me pick out food or scan our purchases. A day doesn't go by that I don't envy his exuberance and energy in life. I am thankful that I at least get to experience it vicariously through him. Of course, while I so love this energy, it also totally wears me out by the end of each day. I just can't keep up with this little kid of mine!

The Two Boys

It has been amazing to me just how different two young brothers can be from each other. My inexperienced mind was expecting that, since both boys come from the same genes and are raised in the same environment, they would be rather similar. But NO. They do, of course, have similar interests and like a lot of the same toys, but their personalities really could not be more different... HL is usually a pretty laid back fellow. He does, initially, get upset by unmet expectations, but quickly rebounds. But, he is disgusted by talk of anything remotely gross (Shrek, for instance), and does NOT like Spiderman due to the fact that he is, well, a spider. The Halloween aisle at the stores is off-limits because it is too scary. HL is sensitive and most often rather easy to discipline; he gets upset when he thinks he has done something wrong. This sensitivity comes through physically, too- he is more easily sunburned, has asthma worse, etc. He is also all boy in his interests: battles, space video games, bloody history (Romans, wars, etc), and wants to play strategy games like Conquest of the Empire. AW, on the other hand, seems to bounce from one end of the spectrum to the opposite. He is generally the most cuddly, thoughtful, sweet little boy- until something sets him off- then, he is inconsolable. Discipline with him is rather difficult, and I am struggling to best him in that arena. While his brother is more book-smart, AW is smart in another way- he is good at manipulating things. He loves everything creepy, (especially Spiderman!)and can NOT wait for Halloween to get here. AW is our physical son, our potential athlete. And sensitive? Nah. I can't tell you how many times I have watched those two wrestle, cringing, just waiting for the screaming to start... when AW will pop up, laughing hysterically. As for interests, he is like his brother in that they both like super heroes and Transformers, but then branches to more compassionate things like caring for his stuffed animals, and playing in the flower garden (albeit as a jungle for his action figures). The differences boggle my mind. However, now that I am in this situation and I talk to other parents of more than one child, I am learning that this really is very common. It seems to be a first child/ second child issue. I imagine it has a lot to do with the fact that child number one has far more one-on-one attention, while the next feels he/she has to compete for it and likely feels inadequate compared to the older sibling. Knowing this, I am trying to give AW more times where he has my undivided attention while brother is at school. And it does seem to help make him a bit more manageable. Regardless of the opposites in my children, I find that I love each just as much as the other- for differing reasons. So then, perhaps this is God's way of creating a parent's love for each child that is like that of no other; giving each child in the world a love all his own.

My Turn on the Soap Box

Here is my take. As my lovely bride stated, this is an equal opportunity economic mess. Let's not forget that fiscal policy is created by both the president and congress. That being said, the real issue in this country is the aristocracy we have created that is the Senate and The House of Representatives. It is no longer about serving this country it's about retaining power. How do they retain power? Lots of money, that's how. How do they get that money? The big "evil" corporations, and don't kid yourself, both sides of the aisle have their big "evil" corporate sponsors. Just look at the list of donations made by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae to both parties. What did they get for their money? The turning of a blind eye and feet dragging on regulation and oversight. The real problem with this country is that our senators are beholden to special interest groups by their need to raise huge sums of money to retain power. It is absolutely ridiculous that there are 5 members of congress that have served over fifty years, 33 that have served over 40 years, and another 40 that have served over 30 years. Talk about out of touch. How can someone who is a member of that privileged class for 30+ years possibly be in touch with America. If you want "change" in this country, how about starting with the new American aristocracy. There is a reason that term limits were put on the president, it is high time we look at term limits for our senators too.

Sick of it

I am just so fed up with people, from both sides, bad-mouthing the other side's candidates and/or beliefs. Why in the world can we not just support what we believe in instead of bashing others?!? The whole idea of a bipartisan government is balance and moderation brought about by opposing beliefs. But to work, it depends on respect toward each other- and we definitely do NOT have that in this country. And I am downright sick of it. And speaking of things that are making me sick... this whole current economy thing has pissed me off as well. Any intelligent, open-minded person can look at the FACTS and come to the conclusion that BOTH sides of our government played a part in the downturn of the economy. Why is it that we can't just focus on what needs to be done to get us back on track? Why do so many people feel the need to point fingers? What good does that do? None. It builds hatred and depletes the desire to work together toward a solution. Come on, America... GROW UP.