Laxadazy?

Is that how you spell it? At any rate, the meaning, in a word?.....slacker! I know, that's me. Sorry. I feel especially slacking today as I was catching up on a friends site and the news of her son. She is VERY good at keeping up her site. Kuddos to you! (It must be your mad scientist traits) So, I'm making a vow...to be a "little" better. One thing that should help will be this new super-duper, suped up model of a laptop. It has a "program" that remembers my logins and passwords. I know, sounds simple. But for me, not so much. One time I forgot my codes to this sight for over six month. And then one night, in a moment of rare inspiration, it just came to me. (Thank you Lord for those moments, but if I may, they are more few and far between than I would like).

On to Ben..he is just plain wonderful! He started preschool this year. I am soooo proud him. He has adjusted well, (even though they changed teachers on him a few weeks into school) He is catching up fine. (sniff in the air to the teacher that said he would be behind for a while and even hinted at us holding him back a year or two..what does she know. She obviously was incapable of picking up on the blatant signs of genius that my son exudes from every pore!) No, I am not bitter.

Ben is learning how to create and nourish friends. This has been fun to watch. But at times, a little disheartening. Some days he comes home and I ask him about his friends he usually talks about the most. He will reply with a smile turned upside down and then a comment like, "He didn't want to share with me." Well, I guess they are all learning to nourish relationships.

He has seemed to have been voted the "most eligible batchelor" of the pre-k class. When I bring Ben in the mornings, there are four adorable girls waiting for his arrival. One of them always keeps a lookout at her post near the front door. When they see us coming, I can hear her squeel, "there he is" as she goes running back to the others in their group. Then they giggle and squeel with delight. When we turn the corner into his room. They rush forward and said in their sweetest and most coy voices, "Good morning Ben". He usually grunts and rolls his eyes. (That a way baby! Just you remember who your number one is...Mama!)

Below are some of his recent photos. My baby...the most wonderful child that ever graced the earth!

Spring Showers and May Flowers

Another spring and all is right with the world at George's Farm. Ben is growing like a weed. And he is smart as a whip. The things that come out of his mouth...man, they floor me sometimes.

His adjustment has come a long way since last spring. He has been home 16 months and he still talks about his foster-family in Guatemala. But now it seems to all be coming together for him. When you ask him where he was born, he will reply, "Guatemala" And when you ask, "Where do you live?" He says, "In Pollocksville, with Momma and Papa." And he definitely is able to make the distinction between his foster-mother and myself. He seems to no longer feel the tug of war in his heart. (Thank you Lord!) His relationship with other people seems to come and go. He has his good days. On those, he trusts almost everybody he should. But on bad days, he is very wary of those around him. But as I said earlier, it's all coming together. It has been a long road for my pumpkin and those that love him. But the ties he is establishing right now are deep and strong and I pray they will be the one's that get him through the tough times as he gets older.

That last statement was a little odd, I know. I found out this week that a friend of mine from high school killed himself a few years back. It has shook me to the core. What would bring a person to do that? If he could have held on just a moment longer before taking the actions he did, maybe life would have seemed a little different. But he didn't. And so ended a precious gift he was entrusted with, his life. If only he would have reached out to someone. I can name over a dozen people that would have been there for him, if he would have just asked. Such a tragedy. A loss that all of us feel, in some way or another. God bless you B. Even though we were no longer close, you are missed. I hope you have peace.

Season of good cheer!

Hi all! I hope everyone is well. We went to Ben's first Christmas parade last weekend. What a blast! The whole world changes when you see it through a child's eyes. As the parade would pass by, people would throw candy towards Ben. He would get so excited and yell out, "Wow!" At one time, he looked at me and said, "This is better than Halloween!" By the time the parade was over he had a whole blanket full of loot. Aside from the candy, he really enjoyed just being there. I love seeing him so happy.

Another story I have to tell. This one is outside of holiday cheer. It falls under the heading of just plain 'ol everyday life with my lil' man. Since he has been recently potty trained, going to the bathroom around my house is a REALLY big deal. So much so, that when he poopoos, we make comments on it like, "Wow, that's a monster poopoo", or "Look, there's the babies!". At any rate, today he was on the toilet, trying his best to poopoo. After he has turned himself red in the face, he looks up at my husband and says, "I can't, my poopoo must be asleep." and then shrugs his shoulders as if to say he just doesn't understand life sometimes.

The pics are of my Mom and Dad in the parade, Ben at the beach right before the parade, Ben's very own toy soldier, (actually he was part of the parade and he jumped out of line and squatted by us just as my sister was about to click the camera). Thanks to the toy soldier, whomever you are!

Have a wonderful holiday season!

He ain't no Woodsman!

My baby is a lot of things, but he ain't no Woodsman! Yesterday was a very traumatic day for our family. My lil' one got his hand caught in a wood splitter...yikes! Needless to say we spent most of the evening and night at the emergency room. They had to perform surgery and piece his finger back together. The bone was crushed but according to the surgeon, it was still viable and he expects a wonderful recovery. Thank you God! My lil' soldier was so brave. And he stole the hearts of everyone he came in contact with. When one of the nurses went to put his patch for the EKG on him, he looked up at her and said, "No thanks". That did it for the whole surgery crew. From then on in I believe they all would have given him their lives just to keep him comfortable.

Well my lil' soldier is home, resting wonderfully. And I am so thankful it isn't any worse. He's a real trooper.

I said he ain't no Woodsmen, but he is super-duper smart. I bet this will be the only time he decides to test the wood splitter. (I hope)

Boos and Bears

Hi all!
We spent the weekend on the road. First we went to the Discovery Place in Charlotte. It was a lot of fun and Ben got a kick out of all the exhibits. But the one he kept wanting to go back to was the bears. They had a Grizzly that ws huge and he just loved it!

Today we went to the zoo. They had a Boo-fest for Halloween. Kids got to play games, face-painting, dress up in their costumes and get some candy. Ben just loves being at the zoo. This was our second trip this year. Because of the weather, this one was a much more enjoyable trip than the last year. It was a beautiful day! Ben went through every exhibit, but he enjoyed the Sea Lions the most. They were in a playful mood and kept swimming right in front of him. The bears had already layed down for an afternoon nap. So there wasn't much to see there. But the whole place was abuzz with children dressed up and enjoying the day. I have attached a few pictures. From now on, whenever I look back at these pictures, I will count it as one of the most perfect days.

God bless,
Gayle

Somebody pinch me, please!

Yesterday was a day like any other. Went to work, came home, blah, blah, blah. But when I came home and went to Gammie's to pick up my lil' pumpkin. They were all outside. He saw me and ran towards me yelling, "Mama, Mama, I miss you." And then he jumped into my arms and gave me the most wonderfullest hug and a kiss. The sun was shining and it was a beautiful day. But nothing could compare to that feeling. Here was my son! He loves me. And God only knows how my heart is 'bout to burst with love for him. Thank you dear Lord for this gift you have allowed me. I know I don't deserve such a precious treasure. I will cherish him all my days and take the best of care of him. I promise to be his ever vigilant custodian. I am amazed.
Gayle

No more Pampers...WooHoo!

I claim VICTORY for the home team! I believe we have defeated the potty training monster. Yeah! My lil' one has done so well with this. He has had a few mishaps, but for the most part...he is the smartest little boy in the world. Next week we move to nuclear science! (he should grasp this concept with no problem)