I love.....

I love the fact that my kids are "different".  They are atypical kids.

I love that at almost 9 years old, Connor still sleeps with Puppy.  They have been buddies since he was a baby.  He isn't very creative with names.  He also had "Lambie" who was a soft lamb.  Lambie didn't last as long as Puppy though.

There were actually 3 puppies that were identical.  I swapped them out after he wore one to shreds because he loved it so much and had to hug it constantly.   I bought several and would switch them out so they would wear evenly.   Eventually he noticed that one had a scratch on his eye and one had a floppier ear.  We 'fessed up and he then had 3 to love.  Each one had a different personality.  One was wild and crazy and another was mellow.  I even made a superhero mask and cape for Puppy to wear.

He has this way of snuggling his puppy between his cheek and neck that is so adorable.  I know that I shouldn't use the word adorable to describe my little boy...he wants to be tough and grown up, but I love the fact that he still loves Puppy.

I also love the fact that my husband understands this.  Last night we tore the house apart at midnight when Connor came out of his room with a worried look on his face and told us he couldn't find his puppy.   Matt looked outside by the trampoline and in the car, under all the furniture until we found it under Madeline.  They had been cuddling the morning prior with all their animals and Puppy was lost in the pile under Maddy.  Matt wasn't willing to give up.  He just kept looking till he could reunite his boy with his puppy.



I love that given the choice, my kids prefer plain old oatmeal to sugary cereal.  Normally I make a hot breakfast during the week.  Weekends are time for me to sleep in, so they have to fend for themselves and eat cold cereal.  Maddy waited till I was up to ask for oatmeal this morning and then they both gushed about how fantastic plain oatmeal was.   Awesome.

Matt loves how at Halloween, Maddy preferred to give her candy away and asked for an apple instead.   They do eat junk but they prefer granola bars to actual candy.  I bought them a chocolate Easter bunny and it's been sitting for days because they forgot about it.  A dish of ice cream is usually the treat of choice....or homemade cookies.


I love that Connor saw a DragonBall-Z toy and asked to see it because "I have one of those on a shirt but I didn't know it was actually a toy or something"  Legos and imagination are the playthings of choice for the kids.

At least when they are not reading.  I love to see both of them curled up with a book.  Connor is reading Ted Dekker novels and books about mythology and adventure.  Maddy loves the Boxcar Children lately.  She also loves Little House on the Prairie.   I was reading to her while she cleaned her room and stopped to take a sip of water....so she finished the next line verbatim.  I love it.  They get excited when we go to the library or bookstore.

I love that our tv is huge but the kids don't watch iCarly or cartoons.  They fight between Mythbusters and National Geographic specials most of the time.  And that really isn't that often...once a week or so.  They do love Pixar movies and other movies, but they love to learn about dinosaurs or the planet.  It's awesome to walk in the living room and see them cuddled up with their dad getting excited about a predator's hunt.


I love how they love each other.   Connor always runs to rescue Maddy when she gets hurt....even if I already am cuddling her.  They have grand adventures and lego battles that stretch from one room to another.  They snuggle up with a book and read together.  They get along most of the time and I only hope that this lasts through teenage years!

I love the fact that they like to tell jokes.  Bad jokes.  Bad puns.  But it's still funny to watch them laugh at their own jokes.


I love my kids.