To the Boy Who Made Me a Mama....

NOAH,

There is nobody on this earth like you. You are ONE. OF. A. KIND.

When I told you that we are family and you have to share your bithday toys with your brother-you chuckled and said “oh yeah mom. I forgot. I thought Deacon and Daddy were just visiting.”

You love with your whole heart.

When we looked at your class pictures posted online yesterday and you found THE GIRL you talk about constantly, I tried to look at other pictures and you got upset. “ BUT MOM I NEED TO SEE KATE, PLEASE LEAVE IT THERE.”

You are curious about everything and determined to be right.

Noah- “When will I be brown?” (To our African American Nanny)

Nanny- “Your mommy and daddy aren’t brown, so you won’t be brown because you are their son. I am brown because my mommy and daddy are brown.”

Noah- “I’m white- brown.” Walks away.

(seeing a sweet Caucasian family on our soccer team with newly adopted daughter who is African American threw this explanation out the window)

Animals are your thing.

At school, you say good morning to your teacher and good morning to Lenny the lizard. She says you stare at/talk to him for a good 10 minutes every day without fail. They have added a turtle as of last week- I haven’t checked to see if this has extended your morning routine.

Little Brother is your best side kick. Also the greatest gift we ever gave you.

There is nothing like seeing the two of you together exploding with giggles.  Night time brings out the comradery and craziness- Daddy and I brace for it. You two are hilarious. Noah, you are learning just as much from him as he is from you. I never realized that it would be a partnership this soon. 

I love how you listen and want to teach him EVERYTHING. You can translate to others what he is communicating with no problems. You say his name probably 1,000 times a day- wanting all of his attention on you.You ask often when he can come to school with you. Last week, you told me “Mom, I’m going to stay home now. I need to wait until Deacon can come with me. We are brothers- we go together.” (que the tears)

You are FOUR. No longer a toddler or baby but a BOY! We are PROUD of you kindness. We are STUNNED by your intelligence. We are HUMBLED by your love for JESUS. We are FOREVER GRATEFUL for YOU!

Deacon Matthew is 23 Months Old!

Weight/Length :  close to 30 pounds and 33/34 inches, I’ll know more next month for TWO YEAR CHECKUP!

Eating:  Deacon will eat when he wants to eat. He loves to dip things in sauces and often requests mustard with everything. He would live on a milk/orange juice diet if we allowed it. Here is a short list of my go-to food for this grazing, independent boy- Greek yogurt, orange slices, cheese, bananas, lunch meat, cooked carrots, edamame, sweet potatoes, and beef jerky.

Bedtime/ Awake:  Eleven/Twelve hours a night and then a two/three hour nap in the afternoon. We switched to big boy bunk beds and sleep has suffered. We are waiting for the top bunk so the double trouble has been sharing a full size bottom bunk. They are both tired and cranky come 6pm.

Diapers:  4’s

Clothes: 18M/2T depending on brands

Favorites:  Snack- Fruit bites, Comfort- Blankets & Orange Juice/Milk TV Show- Dino Trucks on Netflix, Song- Wheels on the Bus, Book- Curious George Goes to Zoo & RoadWork  , Outside activities- making mud soup, riding the tractor, swinging at the park, and kicking the soccer ball.

He loves to "drive" our parked cars in our driveway with Noah. They each take a turn in the captain seat and could be in there for hours. Silence = trouble for this kid. If it’s quiet, we know he’s climbing or getting into things he shouldn’t be. The Deek loves to sit at my desk and “work.” He could race cars along our tile with Noah all day. Bugs, cats, turtles and dogs- Deacon is an animal lover. We found a cockroach and put him the toilet. Deacon kept opening the lid to check on him. It was gross and sweet at the same time. He kept saying "swim bug". Deacon thought the bug was just going for a swim-little did he know....

Deacon is thinking- will he ever stop bossing me mom? 

Dislikes:  He is very particular about how things are presented and eaten.  He only likes certain cups. His water has to be cold. He prefers it to be sparkling water and hot tap water is just unacceptable. Little brother doesn't like wrappers on his granola bar and hates dirty hands. Deacon wants it his way and has no problem letting you know HIS way. We can’t help but laugh. He is great at sharing toys with other kids (not so much brother), but he will not share food.

Tricks: Deacon can count to three. He mimics Noah and points to letters trying to “spell.” Deacon keeps adding new words to his list; here are some new favorites that are audibly recognizable: smoothie, nanny, monkey, choo-choo train, and treat. We are working on his alphabet and he can pronounce most letters fairly well. He knows his name and age. (He already says two- I’m not going to correct him). Little buddy has peed in the potty multiple times and loves it. I am just waiting until Christmas when I have some time to work with him. Deacon can kick the soccer ball well and throw the football with accuracy.

Deacon is built like a linebacker and quite a stud muffin. He will flex and show you his muscles to prove it. We love the boy he’s becoming and find him so hilarious. 

He laughs and cries like his brother and their voices can sound identical yet they are very polar opposite when it comes to personality. Deacon Matthew- you are almost two and we can’t wait! 

Noah Says...

"Let's relax mom."

Mom, I’m going to take my wife home. She looks like Wonder woman.

Me- I love her hot pink shirt.

Noah- hot puke?

Talking after church…

Noah- How was church mom?

Me- It was great. They had baptisms.

Noah- What's baptism?

 (I explained all about it and how it involves dunking in the water. I talked about how it is an outward expression of your belief in Jesus. I felt like I really put it into perspective for him until...)

Noah- Oh that’s great mom. Can I do that? I’ll cannon ball in the water.

Walking out of the mall as a lady is cleaning the glass…

“Mom, is that girl windexing???”

Me- Can I have a kiss? 
Noah- Mom, if I give you too many I’ll run out.

Hunting Coyotes