Beckett will turn 4 years old on Monday.
4 years old!
He's really and truly not a baby anymore. He's not even a toddler. He's a full blown preschool BOY. And while he's had the attitude of a child much more advanced than his age, his body has now caught up. He's lost all that chubby baby fat. His little legs are stretched out. His hand dimples... gone.
It's hard for me to believe that Beck has been around for 4 years already. I suppose this is a sign of my reluctance to acknowledge how fast time is going. I don't want to believe that it's mid-October. I can't comprehend that the current school year is already 1/4 over. How is it even possible that my BABY is 4?
On the flip side of that, can't easily recall a time when Beckett wasn't part of our family. He so completely filled up all the spaces in our family that needed filling up that it just seems like he's always been here. We didn't even realize we were missing something until he completed us.
Maybe it's the great big personality that comes packaged up in the littlest Bovy boy that makes him so hard to forget. Maybe it's the way he completely lights up a room with that dimpled smile. Or the way he needs to touch and snuggle and love. Or the fearless approach he takes with everything from leaping around the furniture to playing sports and wrestling with his brothers. Maybe it's just that he's really adorable.
I'm not sure exactly what makes Beckett so special, but I know without a shadow of a doubt how lucky we are to get to call him ours. They say that the baby of a family is often a free-spirited risk-taker who loves to take on a role of entertainer. I see all of these things in our last born. He's easily the most entertaining of all our boys. I think he benefits from the fact that there's no needy baby vying for our attention and time. We are constantly dragging him from one event to another, but while at these games and practices and concerts HE is the focus in the stands. While his big brothers are doing their thing, he gets to hang out with the grown ups and gets first dibs on all the goodies in the snack bag.
Beckett knows he's loved - and he knows he's cute. That combo is kind of lethal when you are trying to discipline. He is stubborn and hard-headed and can be difficult to get under control. He doesn't care about getting in trouble and rarely reacts to a stern word. He's too busy marching to his own beat and doing his own thing. He's definitely not the rule follower that I see in a couple of his big brothers. I think God really knew what he was doing to save Beckett for last. We need all the parenting practice we can get to handle this boy.
And while I think our parenting has benefitted from having older boys, I know for certain that Beck benefits in countless ways from having a house full of role models and playmates, coaches and antagonists, cuddlers and sparring partners, teachers and helpers. Beckett is better because he has brothers. I hope someday he realizes just how lucky he is.
Because I already know how lucky we are to get to experience life with Bucky. He pushes us all to the edge and in the process has made our lives bigger - and better.
My birthday wish for Beck is that he has a year full of fun and laughs and love. I wish him the happiest of happy birthdays. Here's to FOUR little man! Let's have a ball!
**************************
This weekend we have a full slate of football games and lacrosse games - 1 football, 4 lacrosse, and a BIRTHDAY party! The Buckeye's were kind enough to schedule a night game for us so we don't even have to miss that. It's going to be a great weekend!
Tuesday night Spencer's football team is playing in the first round of the playoffs for the Forsyth Middle School championship. They are going in as a #2 seed with a 7-1 record. I'm super bummed because I will be traveling next week (conference in Vegas) and will miss the game. So everyone say a little prayer that they make it through round 1 so I can watch the championship game on the 27th.
No comments:
Post a Comment