boy oh BOY!!!

i have two grown daughters. i have so enjoyed having girls. we have done all the girlie things: played with dolls and barbies, had tea parties, played dress-up and makeover, played "cat's cradle"... you know, the typical female fun.

yet, as much as i have delighted in my gals, i have always longed for a little boy. and as luck would have it, i was given one when kaye gave birth to t.willie almost two and a half years ago! because kaye is a single mom, she has to work two jobs and she is seldom home. i am the boy's primary care taker. and as you all know, we have our good days and our not-so-good days! today was a good one...sort of.

a neighbor one street over was plowing up a garden with a very loud tractor. we could hear it from our yard and t.willie wanted to "go see guy on tractor." we walked back behind the yards and watched the man finish his job then we walked back home. i decided it would be a good idea if we picked up all the fallen sticks in the yard. t.willie was a lot of help...at first.

after he got bored with the stick job, he started looking for other things of interest. a patch of moss inspired him to pet it and lay his cheek against it; that was cute. after that, he collected rocks for a bit . then, he turned to me with something else in his hands and when i saw it was old crusty dog doodie, i freaked! i kinda smacked it out of his hands as i was telling him that we NEVER NEVER touch dog poopie and i scooped him up to take him into the house to wash his hands. we came back outside and for about five minutes, he collected more rocks. but then, i looked over at him and saw him drop something real fast and hide his hands behind his back. i went over to him with a feeling of dread and saw a dead mouse lying at his feet! i said "did you pick up that mouse?" he answered "yes, gammie." again, we raced back into the house, back to the bathroom sink, squirted a bunch of soap into his hands and scrubbed REALLY well!!! all the while, i was giving him the talk about how we NEVER NEVER pick up dead animals.

at this point, i was kinda re-thinking that thing about wanting a little boy. i was thinking, "what i wouldn't give for a girl and a barbie right about now!" so i told him we were done with the sticks and we were just going to hang out on the porch. he played with his wagon for a few minutes and then he stretched up onto the railing to see a big truck go by. when i saw him kinda scratching at something on top of the railing, i just knew it was bird poop and i sighed as i picked him up, carried him inside and AGAIN washed his hands. i told him gammie had had enough nature and it was time for naps. i didn't even have the energy for the "never never" talk.

after all that nature and fresh air, he did take a nap, which was my plan all along when i took him out. little did i know, it would be me that really earned the nap!

grateful today:
1. for antibacterial soap
2. for dove dark chocolate
3. for the dog (that poops), the cat (that killed the mouse) and the birds (that poop on my railings)- oh, and for that little boy!