My baby is eight. Eight is old. I remember eight. A second grader for goodness sakes. If I could freeze time I would! The years are going too fast!
I can’t believe we still cut his hair like this just fyi. Believe me it will be remedied prior to Christmas. But this is besides the point. Dominic, happy happy birthday!
I always start these posts out by reading the previous years’ post. What were the kids like? What was my frame of mind like? And well, last years’ birthday post was a doozy. Last December this child almost broke us. I am so so so relieved to say that he is leaps and bounds better. He still has a rare meltdown of apocalyptic proportions… but they are few compared to last December. We are coming to realize how his school days greatly affected him mentally and emotionally. This year his class is amazing and his teacher is a wonder! And it is coming through with his behavior at home. Thank. The. Lord.
Dom requires a lot of cuddles. Huggies! He will say. He spends every movie night on my lap. He could get up from a movie and say that I haven’t given him enough cuddles today. His love tank must have a leak but I don’t mind! He has quite the inquiring mind and I enjoy our thoughtful conversations on the way to school in the morning when it is just us. His soft little voice coming from the back seat….
He loves school! No more does he ask me to homeschool him! The worst part of the day is when I have picked out clothes and they are not the same color top and bottom. Plus he prefers wearing only his black jeans. But school! He loves to read! He’s killing it at math! Yes he still is a whole lot of “boy” but we are working through it. His teacher spends time focusing on how to be a better person, not just academics, and he comes home saying the sweetest things that she is teaching them. We love it!
He loves Legos and pandas, Imaginext and Fortnite. He’s a huge video gamer. Sigh. He liked baseball and wants to try it again in the spring but he wants to pick his number and “that requires some thinking time” before choosing. He has lots of friends and loves playing tag at school. Little girls have crushes on him and it is the cutest! He loves his cousins! Although I am sad to say the hugs from Elena at school have stopped…. Not cool anymore I suppose. But mommy still gets them!
He will try anything we put on his plate. Especially spaghetti and meatballs and tacos. Just not together. Waffles with whip cream, not syrup. Vanilla cake or ice cream but don’t you dare put a sprinkle anywhere near him! He loves his new bed and burrows down underneath his stuffies and pillows so you can’t even see him.
He worries when he shouldn’t. He cares what people think of him (but not quite enough to calm himself down when he should)…. He loves potty humor and mindless shows… he is very much the youngest child always suggesting that no one plays with him! Someone recently asked me what his strengths are and shame on me I had to think about it. We have spent so much of his life calling him the Dominator that I had to really think to look past that. Like I said, shame on me. His intelligence, kindness to his friends, love of physical touch and his little anxieties… more than meets the eye I’ll say.
Oh Dom. I am so happy that this year is better. You sure drove us to a breaking point and I know it won’t be the last time… We love you and your cuddles…. Love when you are calm and sweet. You are a wild boy, but you’re my wild boy, my baby. Happy eight!
Who Dominic was at 7, 6, 5, four. three. two and a half. 2 years. twenty-two months. eighteen months. sixteen months. one year. eleven months. ten months. nine months. eight months. seven months. six months. five months. four months. three months. two months. one month. birth.