Cohen, the great, the kind, the optimistic!

I had an idea recently to start writing the boys a letter each year on their birthday. I plan on saving them all up and giving them all their letters when they graduate or something like that! I wish I had thought of doing this earlier but better late then never. I wanted to share Cohen's first letter with all of you because on this day 8 years ago I became a mother. Hope you enjoy reading what I think makes my son so special.

Eight years ago today I was given a gift so special, so precious and so loved beyond what you feel love can be. Today my sweet gift, you are 8 years old. You have proven to be so much more then I could even dream. So I want to tell you about who you are right now so that when you are older and life has carved you out and left you with dents and dings you can read this and find the pieces of you that you may have lost. You are such an amazing boy. You are smart, hard working. You have an abundance of kindness and caring that makes me so incredibly proud. You teacher says you are one of her easiest students in her class. What a gigantic help you are to me with your little brothers. You always clean your room when I ask. You always help around the house when I need it. You have the divine ability to never harbor jealousy of anyone or anything, which is something your Mother wants to learn from you. You have it down! ;) You are a teacher and an extremely patient one at that. You love video games, Star Wars, Spider man, The Ducks, Costumes, and chocolate. But most of all you love your family unconditionally!! Your really into the idea of making movies and have been asking for a video camera for a while now. You have several ideas for movies and websites you want to create. You are so creative. You have an exceptional sense of humor. That you get from your father. You can laugh at yourself when a situation may be a bit embarrassing. In so many way your are like me. You wear your emotions on your sleeve. You have empathy for others that seems mature well beyond your years. You can be hard on yourself but never hard on others. You love with your whole heart. Now what I want you to know is that you need to give yourself more credit then you do. You will succeed at whatever you really want in life. You WILL make your dreams a reality. I can see this in you even of you don't yet. You will find the exact right person as a partner in your life and you will work hard at that relationship. Should you choose to have children they will be the luckiest people on the planet because you will be their father. You bring me joy each and every day son. Thank you for being a part of me I will always have. I love you!!!

Sly Delegation

A day or two ago I was went to sit down on the sofa and possibly read the paper for 5 minutes while Bodhi and Eli napped. As soon as I sat down I realized now that I was not in constant motion it felt quite chilly in my living room and so as I often do I thought out loud "man it's pretty chilly in here!" Cohen spoke up and said "Wyatt, could you get Mommy a blanket?" Sweet right? and it was sweet, but it was something else. Something smart and tricky and even slightly impressive (OK, I might be easily impressed.) It occurred to me that Cohen had not only been thoughtful about his mother's comfort but he was smart enough to ask Wyatt to do it, essentially doing the good deed, getting the credit and he never even had to lift a finger! If you know my son, you know he has no ill intentions. It's just not in him. But who said being an opportunist is ill intent? I just call it Sly delegation. The fact that I not only picked up on this but am sharing it with you all may mean I need to get out of this house more. I'm to tired, of course, to leave but I probably should just the same.

You're to young for hickies!!!

My five year old had been playing in our play room in the basement when he came running up the stairs yelling in a terrified voice "Mom, what is wrong with my arm? What happened to it?" I looked down to find a giant bright reddish/pinkish mark on his arm and I wont lie. My initial reaction was 'Oh, God, what the hell is that?! That looks horrible and serious!' Just before panicking out loud I noticed that this mark was in perfect proximity to his mouth and in an oval shape. I asked him if he had possible been sucking on his arm. Guilt immediately came over his face but his mouth insisted he had not. After I explained to him that if he had not been sucking on his arm then this mark looked serious enough to illicit a trip to the hospital. So out came the truth. "OK, ok. I lied. I did it. I was just really hungry and my arm was so tasty!!" I don't think he connected the sucking on his arm as the reason he had the self inflicted hickey until I asked him. Why he choice to lie at that point only he knows. He does so love to tell a tall tale on occasion. After explaining this is not good for his skin I don't think he will be doing it again until it's inflicted by a girl in his teen years. ;) Just had to share this gilt ridden photo with you all.

Who says you are not enough?!

I remember reading this article a couple of years ago before I had the twins, when life was full of bon bons and leisure time. (NOT!!!) I remember thinking even then how dumb this woman's question was and how could any semi-intelligent person even ask this about being a mother. Someone recently posted it on Facebook, reminding me if it's existence. I thought it was written so well. It really laid out the craziness and the mental exhaustion that being a Mom can be. Now of course, don't get me wrong. I love being a mom. I love my amazing boys. I love that I get to contribute to a part of who they become, thus contributing to society as a whole in my opinion, because I am raising amazing kids who will do great things in the world if I do say so myself. ;) But seriously, I personally think all parents should feel this way about your kids or what is it really all for? I mean if it wasn't, at least in part, to make our kids exceptional contributors then what would they be for? Just for our personal amusement and then when they turn 18, we can be done being amused and expect that they function as respectful, loving adults. Although there are exceptions of kids who had little to no parenting as a child and became incredible people it is much less likely then a child whose parents were present and taught them to kick ass each and every day. So when you put some perspective on it like this I don't see how anyone could belittle the job of being a mother. I could be raising the man who cure cancer or aids or invents a 100% clean and sustainable power source or maybe, just maybe he will be the worlds greatest husband and father. You could be too!! Whitney was so right. The children really are our future! ;) So when someone makes me feel like I am less then enough because I'm 'just' a mom and I'm too tired for nights out, or to keep my house spotless I just think to myself "hopefully my son invents a pill that fixes your medical disorder of "judgmental bitchiness" cause I will get your ass in that clinical trail asap!! Here is a link to the Washington Post article in case it's easier to read. Even when we doubt our abilities, we have to always remember that our hearts are in the right place and no one can take that away from us unless we let them. Mom's Kick Butt!!! Cheers to my fellow Moms and the incredible people who support us in the hardest job on earth!!

Mini MacGyver

You know............. when your boys "MacGyver" any and all common house hold item. I am sure not all boys have a desire to build a man killing robot out of a car battery and 3 paper clips but they do around here. Cohen has always loved to build things. He has made numerous jet packs out of 2 liter pop bottles, guns out of toilet paper and paper towel tubes, and boats from those little card boar snack trays they receive with their school lunches. In fact he has "saved" and brought home every single snack tray since first grade for what he calls his "art-crafts." (I have a whole cupboard of 'waiting to become' art crafts.) He saves the seeds from any fruit he eats and plants them randomly in my back yard. So if you show up one day and I have an apple tree growing out of my patio you will know why! He actually builds some pretty impressive things with random "junk" he has dug back out of my recycling. Other then the fact that he is a giant pack rat I think it's great, well, with one exception. The massive use of dental floss!! Now you would think he would have the healthiest most plaque free gums and teeth in Portland with what we go through around this house, but unfortunately according to his dentist that is not nearly the case. You wouldn't believe the uses a boy can find for floss. But my favorite of all time was when I walked in to his room one day and he and Wyatt had stung it from his platform bed to the closet rod and back again. I asked what the heck were they doing. He said quite matter-of-factly "We built a zip line!" If that aint MacGyver-like I don't know what is. I truly wish I had a picture of his design, but as it was probably the 3rd container of floss in a week that had been "re-purposed" I was pretty much just seeing red at the time. What is a crafty Mom to do but (after calming down) be proud and impressed of each and every project!!

What's with boys and toy guns?

You know...............When they can turn even to most nonviolent, beautiful thing into a gun!!! I am so over toys guns!! In fact I have always hated them. When I had my first child I was absolutely determent to never let him have a toys gun of any kind. Funny thing about boys, they find a way to make ever last damn thing a freakin' gun!! Cohen would hold toy drills, Lego's, and even sippy cups up and pretend to shoot them. I was fighting a loosing battle every day! It didn't change with the other 3 coming along either. Bodhi says all of 10 word. You can bet "gun" was one of the first. So the other day when I was making this coat wrack to put up near the front door wouldn't you guess Wyatt picked up right up and turned it over pointing it like it was some kind of automatic weapon.

I eventually gave in on having guns. Mr Drey and I have NEVER purchase a single toy gun for our boys but EVERYONE else does. It seems to be the most popular gift the receive. After all it is the thing they want more then any other toy.

Why are you so sweaty? I was watching Cops.

You know your the Mom of 4 boys when your life feels like a Will Ferrell movie every day!! I have come a long way since the birth of my first son. I remember thinking when the Ultrasound tech said I was having a boy, "A boy! What am I gonna do with a boy?" Everyone in my family has girls. I have a sister and a step sister. My Mom is 1 of 4 girls and they all, you guessed it, had GIRLS and My Dad's brother had 3 girls as well. Seriously, There were NO BOYS and I didn't think we were capable of making/having them in our family. Turns out it is what I am best at!! ;) (Yes I realize that Aaron is the one truly responsible.) Now that I am surrounded by them I have had time to adjust, and it was a big adjustment! I had no idea humans were capable of taking about poop, farts, penises, eating bugs, guns, bad guys, good guys and Star Wars as much as boys can!! I have become so accustom to the grossness that is boy, that I too, on occasion, have made degenerate stomach churning jokes myself. But those jokes are so worth the reward when I see the surprised and excited look on my boys faces. "Did Mom really just say that? Awesome!!" I think it has made me a better mother and a better person. I can enjoy watching some dancing with the Stars but still look forward to the football game all week!

So here's to just the right amount of gross, a pinch of inappropriate, a dash of 'I'm stronger then you' and a whole lot of love!!!