This one is more...

more complex

more challenging

more rewarding

more responsible

more imaginative

more frustrating

more interesting than I ever thought a child could possibly be. 

McCord at 2 years old was quite possibly the hardest year Bo and I have ever had, but we all made it through, and there on the other side was a fascinating, remarkable 3 year old.  And now here we are another year older with the usual 4 year old challenges, but every once in a while we get a glimpse of this old soul as if he is an old man. 

Tonight after the boys were in bed, I made my way upstairs to wash clothes in the laundry room which is adjacent to the boys' bedroom, but I stopped before I got to the top of the stairs because I heard Mc singing.  He started participating in choir at church a few weeks ago, and it's not unusual to hear him "practicing" when he thinks he's all alone.  How I wish I could have recorded his sweet little voice singing his heart out to God in what can only be described as a stream of consciousness prayer interspersed with the days of the week and a few nonsense words.  It went something like this:

"I love you, I love you. Thank you for my cousins and my friends..."

A few days of the week were sung - not necessarily in the right order. Then,

"And God, can you please tell Santa Clause thank you for Catfish [my very special buddy whom I sleep with every night].

A few more days of the week...

"And thank you for my Batman castle. And all the parts that go with it."

...and then things got a bit muffled here, but I'm fairly certain I could make it out,

"But there's just one thing I don't understand, God. Why can't you just kill all the mosquitos?"


Absolutely delighting in the gift of hearing what's on McCord's heart, and half-crouched on the stairs, straining my ear to the crack in the door, I cried a happy, humble tear at the gift of being a mother. 

The days are long, redundant, and thankless.  And sometimes, many times you feel as though you've made a mess of things.  But every now and then you find yourself holding your breath, a heap of dirty laundry, and a tender moment.  And it makes it all worthwhile. 

Catfish and Batman

McCord is 3 Years Old

...and what fun it is!

Birthday daiquiri tradition: 2 years old & now 3

It's amazing when I look back on McCord at 2 years old and now at 3 and see how much he's changed.  It's been a big year for this little guy.  Here are a few milestones:

• learned what it means to be a big brother
• potty trained 
• started his first year of preschool
• saw some amazing leaps in terms of language development
• learning ABC's and counting
• first trip to Urgent Care and got stitches in forehead

Probably the biggest thing that defines Mc right now is his interest in knights and all things medieval.  Several months ago, he discovered the knight helmet in the dress-up area of the children's museum, and he's been sold ever since.  He talked about it for weeks after our museum visit, so I finally ordered him one, and it's become a staple to his wardrobe.  Bo and I think he likes it so much because it has a little movable "window" that he can use to shield his eyes, and this seems to suit his shy nature. When he wears his helmet, he can be present with everyone, but just a little bit removed and protected behind his "armor." We've checked out all the books at the library about knights, dragons, and castles, and we even had a little medieval birthday playdate with some of his preschool classmates. We talk a lot about knights and their bravery these days - trying to spin this interest into a character lesson about helping others, doing what's right, and living with integrity.  

Good night, knight. 

Sir McCord helping me get set up for his medieval birthday playdate

I bought the invitation and all of the decorations from this graphic designer on etsy (I cannot  say enough good things about her!).  She customized everything  and all I had to do was print. I'm not sure how messages were delivered in medieval times, but McCord helped me put the invitations in bottles.  Since we only had a few of his preschool classmates over, we hand delivered most of them, but two of them we mailed through the postal system - bottle and all.  All we had to do was put stamps on them.   

Mc's official birthday was Monday, but we did a lot of celebrating over the weekend so Bo could be a part of the fun. We tucked Wade in a little bit early on Sunday night, so both Bo and I could be with Mc as we did evening storytime and prayers.  We crawled in his bed and told him the story about the day he was born, recalling the first time we saw him and the nurse shouted out, "it's a boy!" Now that same little boy has grown into a three year old almost over night.  We had a tough year, but I'm so proud of who he is.  McCord has an incredible imagination, he's creative, sweet, and thoughtful.  And I just love the way he wrinkles up his nose and laughs at himself.  He loves to make forts, play in his sandbox, and fix stuff.  He's always game for a craft project, and it's not unusual to hear him singing to himself while he uses the bathroom.  He's McCord: sometimes complex, sometimes shy, always interesting. 

Cupcake party at Mc's preschool.  He was so proud to have his little brother there. 

Mr. Safety, always prepared, because you never know when you might just get up the courage to jump in the water (takes him at least 1/2 hour)

One of the things we gave Mc for his birthday was a flashlight that you strap to your forehead.  He loves to look at his books in his bed in the evening after we turn the lights out, and he immediately put it on when he unwrapped it.  That night I walked past Mc's room as Bo was tucking him in for the night.  They were both curled up on the window seat in Mc's room, reading a Bible story together as they do every night.  It was completely dark in the room, except for Mc's head light shining a tender glow on the two of them.  It's funny how a singular moment will pierce your heart in such a way that it moves you to tears. One son, the baby, already fast asleep and the other son, enjoying a simple but sweet father-son moment. For that instant, everything felt all right in the world.  And I thought for the millionth time in my life how much I love being a mother.

McCord is One Year Old!

...and he's absolutely stolen our hearts. 

1-year-old McCord standing next to the maple we planted in his honor when he was just 2 weeks old

A few things your Daddy and I love that you are doing at 1 year old:

• the way you play with my hair when you're tired
• the way you look at your daddy with such admiration
• you've recently discovered that you can walk on your own if you use your walker (on wheels).  I love how your tiny body waddles through the kitchen without hardly bending your knees.  Sometimes, your Daddy and I think you look like a little old man hobbling to the cafeteria as you'll see from the sideways video below. 
• You love being outside and especially enjoy watching birds and playing with sticks.
• Your favorite toy right now may very well be the Dyson vacuum.  Since we moved recently, it hasn't found a good home yet - and it's hanging out in the playroom.  You couldn't be happier. 

McCord, you have made life so grand!  Whatever did we do without you?!!  We love you so much and are so thankful for the past 12 months.  We consider every day with you a true blessing.

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McCord is 11 months old!

Dear McCord,

Today you are 11 months old, and your Daddy and I are madly in love with you. 

We are so amazed at how much you've learned this month.  You've amended your crawling style using your left knee to support your weight and you kick the other leg out to the side to push and guide - it's sort of like your rudder.  We think you made this adjustment to protect one of your knees from the hardwood floor.  It's a little awkward, but it works for you and I adore your ingenuity! 

You're pretty good at pulling up now, and you practice this new skill when I'm unloading the dishwasher and folding clothes from the dryer.  When you hear me open up the dishwasher or dryer, you come scooting my way (quickly with that rudder of yours!) to practice your new trick. 

Here are some things you've done recently that we don't want to forget:

• You reach out from the stroller to hold your Daddy's hand when we walk around the block
• I'll never forget one time when you were nursing, you stopped, looked up at me, and leaned in to kiss me on the lips, then went back to eating.  Melt my heart!
• When I brush your hair at night, you like to take the brush from me and brush my hair.
• You've also learned how to pick up two things with one hand!  It was quite a revelation for you when you discovered this and Aiya and I enjoyed watching that light go off in your head.  Now you do it all the time. 

This month we went to feed the ducks...



...and learned that those geese are quite bossy!  We were completely outnumbered - I had to hold you the whole time because I was afraid they were going to run away with you!

• You are on the go!  Your favorite thing right now is to explore all the corners of our house.  You know how to open a cracked door, and it's not unusual to find you contentedly sitting on the floor of the pantry playing with all kinds of items Daddy and I didn't even know we had.  Same goes for my closet!
• You've also discovered all of the door stops in the house and you love to pull the white cap off of each one!
• Most recently, you and Daddy devised a little game with your paci.  He pretends like he's going to put it in his mouth and you take it out of yours and try to fit it in his mouth.  This makes Daddy roar with laughter!  You are quite a funny little fellow.

This is an especially sentimental month for us - this 11th month of your life - because it's the last month we'll be living on Surrey Lane.  The day we brought you home from the hospital, I cried when we turned onto Surrey Lane, because I just knew that we would have so many wonderful memories in this place.  We couldn't wait to get you home.  I still remember walking you through each room and telling you all about the house and how we used each room.  I was so proud to show you your nursery - by far my favorite room in the house - because we assembled it especially for you.  We are so thankful for you and for the ways that you've enriched our life here and forever. 

Here you are standing next to your maple on your 11 month birthday.  My how you and the maple have grown!

McCord, Monkey, Baby, we love you like crazy.