Gratitude 16: 4th grader.

The little boy grew. He grew and he grew and he grew. He grew until he was nine years old. And he never wanted to come in for dinner, he never wanted to take a bath, and when grandma visited he always said bad words. Sometimes his mother wanted to sell him to the zoo!


But at night time, when he was asleep, the mother quietly opened the door to his room, crawled across the floor and looked up over the side of the bed. If he was really asleep, she picked up that nine-year-old boy and rocked him back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. And while she rocked him she sang:


I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, As long as I'm living, my baby you'll be.

I think Thomas got this book for his first Christmas. Or maybe I bought it before he was born. I don't remember exactly.  But I do remember there was at time when I could not read it to him without crying. I also remember a time when I could read it to him without crying, which meant that I was reading it to him all the time, which is pretty cool, I think.

Wow, I have a nine-year old.  And he hates to brush his teeth, and he hates to get in the shower, and then he hates to get out of the shower.  He likes to talk about Pokemon. A lot.  He likes to play Pokemon on his DS. A lot.  He eats me out of house and home. If it were not for Frito-Lay and their awesome 50 packs of chips, he would die of starvation.  But he's equally happy eating an apple. Or a pear.  Where did this kid come from?

He also likes to cuddle.  And take care of his mom when she is sick.  He loves animals; one of his best friends in the whole world is his cat, Bucket.  They are inseparable.  He loves babies.  Whenever I make a baby blanket for someone, he wants to make the baby a burp rag from my extra fabric.  If there is a baby in the room, he wants to be holding it or playing with it.  And babies and dogs and cats like him.  It makes me smile.  Not the least because my dear Grandma was the same way.

I love that he can read some of the books that populated my childhood (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, Dawn Treader.)  I love that he has books from his generation (Percy Jackson series, Magic Thief series.)  I love that he loves books; that he can get a new book and cozy up to it the way that I would have at his age.  It makes all those hours of reading "Hello, little mouse, what are you doing?" over and over worth it.

I'm still new (it feels) at being a mom to a boy.  I don't get the tickle game.  I don't know why brushing his teeth has to be an opportunity for entertaining his brother.  But this is what it is like to have my Thomas.  We are so much alike that we drive each other crazy.  But I can still look in his now-growing-up face and see that sweet baby.  The one who I gave my heart to 9 years ago; the one who I surrendered my body to 10 years ago.  And even though he is so often yin when I am yang, we understand each other. 

So yes, I'll love him forever.  And yes, my baby he'll always be.  But the song is this: (sung to the tune of "Are you sleeping, are you sleeping, Brother John?")

I love Thomas, I love Thomas, yes I do! Yes I do! I love him in the morning, I love him in the morning, and at night. And at night. 

Thomas is a cute boy, Thomas is a cute boy, yes he is! Yes he is! Even when he's whiny, even when he's stinky, and when he won't eat, and when he won't sleep.

I am grateful.And while he still hates to sleep, and is often stinky, I no longer have to worry about him not eating.  His 9-year old body is taking care of that one.