Collin's Birthday

Friday the 13th, dawned bright and early with a fever for Collin. (It actually started in the middle of the night.) Poor boy!! He hasn't been sick a day this year, but of course, his first time is on his birthday. And he had been so excited for me to come eat lunch with him and bring cupcakes at snack time. I was just as bummed. His teacher was SO SWEET though and called me that morning asking if Collin was nearby and the class could wish him a happy birthday. So I put the phone on speaker and watched Collin's face light up as 20 little voices rang out with a "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, COLLIN!!" I just love his teacher. What a sweet thing for her to do.

Sick or not, I also did my birthday duty and got him a sugar filled breakfast.

Trevor and Gretchen had come the day before for some dental work and brought Grandma Dog's presents. She really spoils them. He got a soccer game, Superman fishing pole and Hot Wheels car that spins wheelies. 

He absolutely refused medicine all day, so he dealt with a fever until Trav mixed some Tylenol into a yogurt and coaxed him into eating it around 2pm. It was funny to watch him slowly perk up, then announce he was all better! I asked him if he knew why he was feeling better. He tilted his head with a smile and said, "Dad's blessing" (He had gotten a blessing in the night). Um, ha, now I was the one squirming! I said, "Well, yes, but also Dad mixed medicine in your yogurt." He was pretty pleased he had been "tricked!" as he called it. ;)

Weston had preschool in the morning, so when Olive went down for her nap, Collin and I got some good, one on one time. He requested we have "school", since he was missing it that day. So we pulled out the whiteboard, phonogram flashcards and math workbooks and had school! It was actually really fun. He read some books to me and I decided right then, that maybe his sick day wasn't so bad after all. 

Earlier in the week I told him he could choose which dinner I made on his birthday. The problem is, he doesn't like any of my dinners. (He even apologetically told me a few weeks ago that he told Lilly I make bad dinners. I'll admit, it hurt. Made me wonder what other bad things my kids will say about me in the future that I won't hear about.) After an exasperating conversation over the fact that I would NOT be buying him dinner and he HAD to pick something I make, he settled on spaghetti with meatballs.

How about that birthday plate, huh?! I've been wanting a special birthday plate for years and finally bought one. Didn't realize it was more platter than plate. He sure thought it was cool though. Even better was the light up ice cube for his drink. We got it from Disneyland when we ate at the Blue Bayou and I decided it would be something fun to bring out on birthdays. You would have thought we dropped gold in his water.

 

 

 

 

 

 (I swear Weston was there too!)

 

 

Rachel sent him a Lego set that we found on the porch right before nighttime. There was no going to bed until that thing was finished! He hasn't stopped playing with it since.

The next day I was just praying he'd feel better so we could go ahead with our plans to go to Albuquerque. I knew if we didn't do it then, it would be a month before we had another free Saturday. Luckily, he did seem much better. With a dose of Tylenol, we picked up Lilly and headed to the big city for a day of birthday fun!

First stop: Gravity Park

As it ended up, I kept track of Olive and Travis ran around with the other 3. Olive didn't exhibit much fear and it was BUSY that day. I felt like I was trying to protect an ant from a stampede!

Dad's are the best tag players.

After that, he chose Chick Fil A for lunch. Um, I like me some chicken sandwich with my Chick Fil A sauce please. :) While they played on the toys, I hurried across the street with Olive to get some Target shopping in.

 

Then we tried to go to the zoo.... but, well, it was a ZOO. Apparently the place to be on one of the first warm Saturdays of the season. So we went to the Children's Museum instead.

 

Olive has been kinda a stinker lately... have I mentioned that? ;) It's totally typical, but she absolutely refuses to let me hold her when we walk from the car to the store or wherever we're going. She used to let me hold her hand but no longer. And she pitches the BIGGEST fit if I try to hold her or her hand. But it's kind of non-negotiable, you know?! I can't have my 18 month old running through parking lots. So, since I had Trav with me I decided to put my foot down on the issue. Usually, I just have a backward- bent, screaming toddler in my arms by the time I get to the store, but this time I turned around, called Travis to have him unlock the car and plopped her back in her car seat. It was NOT easy even getting that top buckle on her. I was calm the whole time, but just quietly talked to her, "You need to hold Mommy's hand. Or else I have to pick you up. It's not safe, Olive." And other such talk. She was NOT having any of it! And this was not a miscommunication issue. She knew exactly what I was saying. She bloody screamed for several minutes, before I'd turn around and ask, "Are you ready to go in?" She'd huff up some tears and quiet down, begrudgingly nod her head. Then I'd add, "Will you hold Mommy's hand?" Without skipping a beat, she'd snap a viscious, "NO!" and go back to screaming. I'd sigh, turn around and wait a few more minutes before trying again. I think it was the 4th time she finally nodded and then happily let me hold her hand as we walked into the museum. That. girl. I have a feeling it will be power struggles until we hand her off to her husband.

 

It's hard learning you don't own the world. 

The museum was crowded, but they had fun! This time, Trav kept watch on Olive and Weston and I took the older two. I think they spent at least 11 seconds at every one of the 200+ activities. I was so exhausted I thought I might fall over standing up. When I got back to Trav he said Olive and Weston basically stayed at the same 2 exhibits the entire time. Bahhh!! I picked the wrong kids for sure! ;)

We had prepped him that even though this was a fun birthday day for him, we still needed to run errands. Sam's Club being a big one. But they got pizza for dinner and I got their amazing cinnamon, butter pretzel. So it was a win, win. Turns out, it's only the Albuquerque Sam's that makes these so amazing. In Mesa, it's just a regular ol' pretzel. I mmm and ahhh with every squishy, delicious bite.

Impromptu hugging session??

We dropped Lilly off around 8pm. It was a long day, but I'll still take that over planning a birthday party, anytime! Good choice, Mr. Collin!! 

On Monday, I got a babysitter and some McDonald's and had lunch with my main squeeze. I think the whole class felt like it was their birthday. Everyone was SO excited I was there. I went out to the playground with him afterward and you would have thought I was covered in sugar for how closely the mass of children stuck to me. I was starting to get claustrophobia after a while. Not a moment went by that I didn't have 40 kids surrounding me, touching me, grabbing at my hands, calling out to me, asking me to play with them, etc, etc. I just want to play with my kid for heaven's sakes!! You'd think they'd never seen a grown up before! Despite all of that, I still did love getting to spend that time with him. 

 

Ohhh, I love this boy!! Seriously, he is the cutest. I just want to freeze time. I'm starting to panic, realizing that time just keeps getting faster and he's just going to keep getting older and eventually not want much to do with me. I love that he still draws me pictures, wants to snuggle in the morning and thinks I'm fun to have around. I just melt from his big, brown eyes and smattering of freckles across his face. I love his coloring and crooked smile. I'll be the first to admit that he's driven me up the wall, but I wouldn't trade him in a millisecond. And I just hope he forgives me or forgets all the times I lost my patience with him. I think God chooses someone extra special to be the first born (no reflection on me intended, haha). But I just know he was meant to come to our family first for a reason. I hope you will always know how fiercely I love you, Collin!!! You are determined and thoughtful. You try to do things to make others happy. You are smart and so loving.  You are inquisitive and think things through. The phrase, "If there's a will, there's a way!" definitely applies to you. I'm so grateful you're in our family!

He has noticed me writing in my journal in the morning and started asking for his own journal. Sooo, he got first, very own journal for his birthday. He was SO excited to be able to wake up and come downstairs so we could write in our journals together. My little protege. Melts my documenting heart. He even stores it next to mine. 

This was his first entry. 

He still digs on the Superhero scene. This includes Ninja Turtles and Power Rangers. He is super diligent at doing his homework. I never have to ask him or remind him. He's got his folder out before I've even said hello to him. He is a great helper with Olive and loves to play with her. He loves his footsie pajamas and has always worn holes in the feet before the end of winter. He's a pants and socks and shoes kind of kid. I usually have to hide his pants during the summer to force him to wear shorts. His favorite friend in the world is Lilly. He will always choose pizza if he has his choice. He has a million questions. Like, literally. After picking him up from school, I won't have gone one mile before he's rattled off a dozen questions, back to back. He just thinks about things and needs to know WHY! ;) I think he has a little bit of anxiety working in his brain. Just tonight, prompted by an article I read, I asked him if he feels safe at school. I was disappointed when he thoughtfully, but rather quickly said, "no." I asked him why, and he simply stated that he only feels safe when he's with me. I suppose I can relate to that. Thankfully, after further questioning, I'm pretty certain he really does feel safe, or at least is safe at school. Sometimes with his determination and argumentative nature to get what he wants, I just try to remind myself that these qualities can serve him well in the future if used for good! He really is a sweet boy with a tender heart though. We love our Tollin Towaga. ;)