Recently a very good friend of mine visited for my son's seventh birthday.  It was crazy that he was turning seven, even crazier that a week later I would be turning 34.  When she walked in to Chuck E Cheese it was like she hadn't been gone all that time.  We picked up right where we left of a year ago, and it made me appreciate her that much more.  Friendship is so easy to offer, but so much harder to maintain.  When you find someone that no matter what, they are there for you - it is something that is special and should not be taken advantage of.  This is someone that will always be there for me and I will always be there for her.

I have blogged about friendship before.  Is there a time in your life when it isn't as important anymore.  I mean, Dondre is my best friend.  He makes me laugh, cry, love, all the good things in life.  He is me and I carry him with me everywhere I go.  When I  am alone, he is still with me.  That is how it should be.  That is one friend that will never disappoint me.  When I am sick, he will take care of me, when I am sad he will comfort me.  He will never cancel on me, never choose to hang with someone else over me, never go weeks without calling.  Is a faithful loving husband all that is necessary? 

Probably not for most people - but some times the safe option is the best. We will have been married 10 years in July.  I still feel for like I did on the day we got married.  We have a beautiful family and I couldn't ask for more.  I am grateful for the life that we have together.  I have been down a bit recently and he reminds me that I am a good person and anyone is lucky to have me as a friend.  I reminds me all the time that I am not in control of others actions and that their actions have no reflection on me at all.

So here is to two people in my life that I know I can count on at all times.

You know you're a mother when. .

Adventures in motherhood have their ups and downs.  Many times I still ask myself what I have gotten into, and other times it is as easy as breathing.  Take last night for instance.  Alex and I sat and colored together, Chris sat in my lap, and Krista quietly watched TV.  Easy as breathing.  Now compare that to today.  I had to take them to practice with me.  Can you say total disaster.  They were bad enough for me to be embarrassed.  That was one of those "what am I doing" moments.

Here is a short list of typical mommy/child things that are relevant in my life, maybe other moms too.

You may be a mother if. .

• You go to bed childless, and wake up in the middle of the night with one on your legs and the other in your armpit.

• you find yourself watching Yo Gabba Gabba even when there are no children in sight.
• when a sale at Children's place is the highlight of your weekend
• when you are out without the kids, you have a mild panic attack every so often thinking you left them on the car.
• you can almost bet that when your cell phone is missing, it is mostly in the hands of a child curled up in a corner playing angry birds or where's my water.
• You keep snacks in your purse, and end up eating them yourself.
• you could win a science fair with whatever is growing under the car seats in your third row.
• If you hear - I have to POOOOOOOP! at least three times a day.
• Announcing that you are going to the bathroom translates into "party in the bathroom" and tiny feet follow you into the bathroom to enjoy the show.
• you have had to buy a whistle, piece of candy, etc, because a greedy little kid put their mouth on it before you could stop them.
• when you plan on shopping for yourself, you come home with three backs for the kids and a pack of gum for yourself.
• have almost run into the car in front of you because you were trying to keep two little people from gouging each other's eyes out.

Then again, these things maybe unique to me lol

My Children the Environmentalists

I have decided that the children in this house are very concerned about the environment.  There are a few habits that they have picked up that lead me to believe this.

1.  I have the hardest time getting them to flush the toilet.  The truly believe in if its yellow let it mellow.  Unfortunately the also believe in if it brown let it hang around.  The amount of times that I have lifted the toilet lid to a hefty surprise is ridiculous.  I guess conserving water is top priority for them.

2.  The fact that amount of food I find in the third row of my car is incredible and at times disgusting.  I have to clean it out everyday or all kinds of wonderful new molds and animals would grow back there.  A few times I have had to yell "NO, don't eat that !"  Chris has occasionally tried to make a snack out of the left over nugget from the week prior that I may have missed during my quick clean up.  I guess it is a good thing to not waste food with starving children all over the world, but I do feel like my back seat is an on going science experiement sometimes.

3.  Energy is another resource they love to conserve.  Every time they see me on a laptop, they feel the need to close the top, not matter what I am doing.  I could be in the middle of typing, facebooking, reading the newspaper, whatever it is - Chris especially, will make a point of ending my computer session.

A normal day in the Cheatham house.

PARTY TIME!

My father in law turned 70 in March.  We had a huge surprise party for him last Saturday.  The theme was black and white so we dressed the children accordingly.  They looked adorable of course.  When we got there they already had the music playing and there were quite a few  people milling around.  One thing people learn very quickly about my children is that they love music.  The second is, they are not afraid to dance.  Krista took to the dance floor first of course and shook her little hips to the beat.  Next was Alex.  My poor boy really doesn't have any rhythm but he tries and has fun doing it. 

It was great to see them all around family.  Being a military brat, we did not live around family.  We got to see them in the summers mostly, and it usually involved a long plane ride.  My children have both sets of grandparents here, cousins, some aunts and uncles, its great.  I do wish more of my family were here, but its nice to have so many people close by that truly love my children.  All the children played with the balloons and danced around the floor, while the adults caught up with each other's lives, and occasionally danced to Wobble or Cupid Shuffle. 

It really was a nice party, and dad seemed really surprised.  He cried tears of joy at seeing his family together to celebrate his life.  I just wish I had gotten a good picture of him that night!

The Lorax!

The last time we took our children to the movie I spent half of it in the lobby entertaining Christopher while Donnie tried to keep a hyper active Krista under control and a noise intolerant Alex to stop plugging his ears and complaining that it was too loud.  Needless to say no one really saw much of the movie, and even to this day there is a chunk of Despicable Me that I have not seen.  Because of this, we were not in much of a hurry to take them back, at least not as a whole family.  Well this weekend, we decided it was time to test the waters again.

The Lorax on Krista's mind from the time she heard the first preview.  We had been holding off but broke down on Sunday and took a trip to Azalea Square with Regal gift certificate in hand.  Once each of the children was settled in with there snacks, an amazing thing happened.  They WATCHED to movie.  No whining, plugging ears, or dancing in the isles at all.  Krista and Alex stayed that way the entire time.  They were entranced and loving the songs and silly jokes.  At one point Chris did ask to go home, but once I said no, he was able to accept it and finish watching through the end.  It may not have been his favorite movie, but he behaved wonderfully.

We asked the kids what their favorite parts of the movie were.  Alex said he loved when the trees started growing back.  Krista liked when the Lorax came back.  Christopher, well he liked when they kissed.  I just have a feeling he is going to be the one that I have to really watch as year pass. . .

That damn scale!

Since I was pretty young, I have been obsessed.  It's not a unique obsession; its nothing glamorous or trendy.  My obsession is the same as many women - the number that pops up when I step on the scale.  For some reason, no matter how I may be feeling, one look at that number can ruin my entire outlook for the rest of the day.  All of a sudden my clothes feel tight, my belly looks pudgy, and I think about how everyone will be able to see the three pound difference I just saw on the scale.  As if people size me up when I walk by looking for any extra inches I have packed on.  Sometimes I forgo the scale because I fear what it may say.  I image the worse, and it manages to plague me all day until I break down and weigh when I get home. You know as well as I do, weighing after you have eaten all day is probably not the best idea.  So, after I weigh, I try to take into consideration that I have eaten, had water, whatever I can think of to subtract pounds from what I just saw.  Just typing it out makes me realize, even more than I already have, how silly the whole process is.

In actuality, that damned scale should be banned from my house.  It is like a magnet that I am uncontrollably attracted to.  I stand on it and pray that it will be kind.  When it is, it's a good day.  How have I come to allow it to rule my life?  There are so many factors in this.  For starters, my mother is as obsessed with it as I am, so you could say I learned from the best. But, to be realistic, there is a lot more to it than that. Let's start with the obvious "I was chubby as a kid" excuse.  I wasn't fat, just thick.  I had solid legs, chubby cheeks, and at that time I was somewhat tall.  I didn't start to feel chubby until about 5th grade.  A friend of mine had lost weight during the summer between fifth grade and sixth grade.  She told me that a girl that lived by her said I looked like I had gained the weight she lost.  Seriously?  I was crushed , but brushed it off as if it didn't really bother me.  I remember that feeling; my heart started beating fast ,and I felt the tears that wanted to come, fighting to stay back.  I never liked to give anyone the satisfaction of seeing me cry.  Another incident was with another friend.  We will call her twin number one.  She spent the night at my house, and in the morning I offered to make breakfast.  At that time I was pretty good at scrambled eggs with cheese (still am).  I made four eggs because I didn't know how much she wanted.  Later when we had a falling out (about two weeks later) a friend let me know that she had said I made way too much food, I must think she eats as much as me.  For real?  This was said before we even had it out, while she was still supposedly my friend.  Visual: Self esteem + chisel and hammer = one sad girl.  At this point, I knew that no matter what, I would be the fat friend.  You think that is all - nope, I am just pointing out the most ridiculous of the experiences I had with cruel people.  The mother of one of my friends, after learning that I had made the school cheer squad, informed my mom that I would never make it on the main land because I was too heavy.  AN ADULT people, an adult said this.

These early experiences followed me through school.  Even in high school when I was no where near fat, I still considered myself the "fat friend".  I wore clothes that covered as much as possible, only venturing to where something tighter every once in a while.  It was a comfort thing.  If it was covered no one could really tell what size I was.  For me to wear a skirt or dress on a normal day was almost unheard of.  Thinking back, I should have gone ahead and worn the bikini back then!

At this point in my life, when I walk in the bathroom and see my daughter standing on the scale, it makes me realize I have to get over this longing to make the scale say what I want it to say.  I mean really, it is about 6 pounds that plague me.  In the scheme of things, that is not all that much.  I do not want my beautiful daughter to have any issues with her weight or define herself by what the scale says.  I am going to try to change this for the better.  It will be hard, but I think as a responsible parent, it is time I just let it go. (not my weight, the obsession.) 

It Has Been Awhile!

It has been over half a year since I last blogged about the house of Cheatham.  A lot has happened, but goodness knows I couldn't begin to recollect all of the details.  In a nutshell - Krista is more of a drama queen than ever, Chris is a daredevil that managed to pull a TV down on himself and broke his femur, and Alex still has not lost the alien tooth (I think it is cemented in place).  Donnie has decided a full beard works better than a goatee, and me, well not much has changed there.

I figure I need to do a better job of blogging, but my brain is so jumbled with info, I need to categorize, maybe have multiple  blogs to better organize what I want to say.  So here it is.  I will start a blog just for Krista.  It isn't that I love her more - she just provides more blog-able materials.  I am blown away by some of the things that she says and does. For this reason she needs her own space.  Maybe one day I will write a book filled with her antics.  Next, I will keep this one strictly for family purposes.  Anything whole family related will go here.  Our trips, holidays, birthdays, etc.  Finally, I am going to do one to follow the kids journey into the modeling industry.  I do not know how well they will do, but we will have fun finding out! 

I am trying to rededicate myself to doing this, so we will see how it goes.

Krista's birthday party - better late than never!

My baby girl turned four February 12, 2011.  I cannot believe how fast time is flying with these children.  It seems like only yesterday we were bringing her home, and now she is almost old enough for school!  

Any who, she chose to celebrate at the bowling alley, AGAIN!  Last year's party was interesting, so I knew that this year would probably be doubly so - and I was not disappointed.  There were twice the amount of kids there this year, so it was CRAZY.  They all had so much fun though, so it was all worth it.  The best thing is that she loved it, and that was all that mattered.

Don't let the sweet look fool you.  Game on!

She may look serious, but that is just her game face.  She takes this bowling thing seriously.

Baby girl and Grandmom.

This balloon was probably one of the highlights of the party for her.  I will never understand why balloons are such a popular thing with children.  It lasted about three days at home.

Food.  Enough said.  The smile explains it all.

Friendship???

I remember as a kid I was never very good at approaching people that I did not know.  For me it was easier to hang back and observe before diving into anything too quickly.  I am not sure if shy is the right word, more like guarded.  The closer you get to people, the harder you fall when someone has to move, or something goes wrong in the friendship.  Being a military brat taught me that as strong as a friendships are, they can go away with a little distance and time.  Any who, thinking about this leads me to ask the question - what really makes a friendship?  When can you call someone a friend instead of just an acquaintance?  It is like the first few months of a relationship when you a re not sure when it is okay to introduce someone as girl/boyfriend.

Anyway, as an adult, I have a few people that I think I would consider friends, a slue of aquaintances, and then those that are not either or - they just . . .are.  The thing is at one time or another they had a label, but through distance, time, fallout, or other, I am not quite sure where to classify them. There are also those that seem like friends, sometimes, acquaintances at others, and nonexistent from time to time.  You know those people who think that it is impossible to be friends with more than one group at one time.  Or, my favorite, the friend of convenience.  Love that one.  The problem with it is that unless it is explicitly said, you never really know where stand with anyone.

Then of course, the new trend nowadays is for everyone to be classified as a favorite or bestie.  The term best friend has lost some of its power in some cases.  It used to be that person you could trust, you loved to be around, and who you could truly be yourself around.  Now it seems like, for some people, it is whoever happens to be available for that weekend.  Best believe if I refer to someone as my best friend, I truly means that I think of you as family.  Words need to maintain their meaning, or the lines get all muddled.  I have found in the past that when I finally get close to someone, I will fight to keep that friendship.  I will go out of my way to keep things on good terms. Unfortunately, that favor is not always returned.

I just hope for my children, friendship truly means something.  The older they get the more I worry.  Will they have those close friends that they'll know really have their backs through thick and thin, or will they have that group of friends that are there just when it is convenient.  I want them to foster relationships that mean something, even if it means only having a few good friends, several acquaintances, and maybe a few "others". Most of all, I hope they can be each others best friends.

So, I got my nose pierced

There are a few times in your life when you feel like doing something out of character.  Last weekend was one of those times.  I decided, along with a friend, to get my nose pierced.  I had a few stipulations of course.  First, it had to be as small as possible without being invisible.  Second, the place that performed the procedure had to be clean - as in doctor's office clean.  Once both stipulations were met (thanks Cat) it was go time.

Donnie really thought I would chicken out, which made me want to do it even more.  He came with me, along with a friend and her husband.  She went first.  I could have easily backed out after watching her eyes tear up, and seeing the blood that he pulled out on the qtip, but I figured I had already committed, so it was a done deal.  I will not lie and say it didn't hurt at all, but I have recovered from three c-sections.  This pain came nowhere close to that.  The guy was very professional, and I have to say I love it.

Now, the reaction to it has been different from person to person.  My coworker and great friend Cat was THRILLED that I was doing it.  She couldn't wait to see it :-).  Most of the people at work had positive comments, or just none at all.  Then there was my mom.  She professed that is was unprofessional and she did not like it.  I took offense, but got over it quickly.  We came to an understanding, and though she still doesn't like it, she is not going to judge lol.  My dad laughed at me.  I can accept that.   As far as my uncle was concerned, it was hot; my mother in law shared his sentiment.  All in all it has been well received.

There is no telling how long I will have it, but for now I am loving it (as long as my children stop trying to rip it out of my nose)  Gotta love them.

Mom's Side of the Bed

Is it true that nothing solves your problems like a mother's hug, or kiss, or kind word? If life experience has taught me correctly, the answer would undeniably be YES. My children love their father, don't get me wrong, but it seems like when push comes to shove, I am the one with three little ones in my personal bubble. I am not saying that I don't like my children to be in my personal bubble, but I would like for them to invade HIS personal bubble occasionally.

The best example of this would be the children's preference of waking me up even though their daddy is sleeping closest to the door. And when I say closest, I mean he is the first thing that you see when you walk into our bedroom, so it is not like they don't see him. They make the conscience effort to walk around the bed and come to me. Several nights I have woken up with three sets of eyes staring at me. I feel their eyes on me before I ever open mine. I try to ignore it, but that is not possible. Chris will start patting me on my cheek and saying, "I hongry mommy, wake up!" Not once, not twice, but as much as it takes to get me to get up or give them permission to raid he cabinets. Then comes the chants for Wow Wow Wubbzy, Princess and the Frog, or Trek (Krista language for Shrek). By the time we go through all of this with all three, I might as well get up and grab a cup of coffee.


The bed is not the only place they are guilty of this favoritism. On those lucky days when they decide they want a nap, my lap has to accommodate three of them at one time. Many a days I have been stuck under three children, and had to call for help because the feeling was leaving my legs. My favorite time was when Chris was on my chest, Alex was on my lap, and Krista was on my head. Seriously. I wish I had a picture but alas, one arm was pinned under Alex and my phone was on the opposite side of the free arm.

In the end I guess if they did not hover over me and use me as their personal jungle gym, my feelings would be hurt. They make me laugh everyday, and although three was never in the cards, I couldn't imagine life without every single one of them.

Christmas 2010

Christmas was great this year. It was nice to have my bro and sis in law here again since last year they were on a cruise to Mexico for the holiday. We did the normal stay at mom and dad's the whole week tradition which the kids really love. They get to see everybody from sun up to sun down and they enjoy every minute.

Santa was pretty good to everyone. Alex is Ironman (seriously thinks he is) and has all the accessories necessary to save the world as Tony Starks. Krista is my little princess. She has her favorite princess doll and baby doll (Tiana of course) and a box full of fairy princess clothes to dress up in. I do have to say if there is a character that she most is like in that movie it would be Charlotte. I think Krista would kiss a frog if she could marry a prince and be a princess.

Chris wanted a happy meal and a Spiderman for Christmas. Unfortunately they were all sold out of happy meals, but we did manage to find a few Spidermen for him. Typical of a two year old though, he played with everyone else's toys most of the time.

Overall there was good food, quality time with friends and family, and great memories. My only complaint is that it was over way too soon.

Halloween 2010!

So, this year we decided that we were going to dress up for a Halloween party. It has been years, literally, since we even thought about putting on a costume. My friend and I decided to be josie and the pussycats (minus one cat lol). Donnie was Jason, my brother in law was a pimp. HILARIOUS. My sisters-in-law were - a very bat girl, a bumble bee, and a french maid. Some friends of my sister in law were also there, and she was Mrs Claus, while he was an inmate having a really bad hair day. While none of us won the costume contest, we all had fun dancing and laughing A LOT. I don't think you ever get too old to go out and have fun. I realize that many people think there is an age limit, and that after you have kids life stops, but I just do not believe it. If you like to dance when you are 15, why will that change just because you have children. I will definitely be dressing up again next year.

Cheerleading

This part of the year is always so hectic. I have school, practice, kids, throw in DeVaughn's football and now Krista's dance class there is never a dull day. Sometimes I wonder if I am crazy for keeping such a schedule, but then I wonder if it wasn't this crazy what I would do.

The bad thing about this year has been the last month. I have been sick every week. First it was a stomach flu. It lasted a day. Then the following week it was tonsillitis and pharyngitis. Then the stomach flu all over again! Three days this time. What, you may ask, was my ailment this last week? A cold. I now have a cold. No telling how long this one will last. I am totally looking forward to what is next. ^insert sarcasm^

The Lion King (featuring the Cheatham Children)

So, the new favorite movie is the lion king. We have probably watched it about 100 times. . . a week. It is crazy that they love the movie as much as I did (and do) They now know most of the words (I am so proud) and can sing most of the songs. Our favorite to sing together is be prepared. It sounds wonderful, although Chris does forget some of the words every once in awhile. BUT - he is two so its understood.

The thing is, my children now act out different scenes as the movie is playing. Their favorite is the fight scene. Imagine - Krista is Scar, Alex is Simba. Krista stalks Alex and says "do you deny it!"

Alex answers, "No."

She comes back with, "So you admit it. Murderer!"

Alex says, "No, it wasn't like that." and so on and so forth, until we hit the climactic part when Simba is hanging off the cliff (in our home the coffee table represents said cliff).

Krista leans over and says, "I have a little secret of my own. IIIII KIIILLLLEEEDD MUFFFFFAAAAASSSSAAA!!" Alex then roars loudly, jumps up on to the table on top of Krista, and puts his paw (hand) on her throat.

"Tell them the truth!" and so on and so forth. Once Scar (Krista) admits he killed Mufasa, they both start in roaring and pawing at each other. Krista then falls off the table down to the waiting Hyenas, and yells in agony as they do her in. All this time Chris is in the background roaring periodically. I have spent many a days watching this (and many other scenes) play out in front of me, and have not once thought to pick up my camera and video tape it. That will be my first priority next time they do it.

I love my kids, they really are entertaining.

Krista - SMH

My girl is a drama queen, very girlie, and loves pretty things, BUT having three boys in the house has rubbed off on her something serious. This girl will hop on chairs when she sees a bug, and scream bloody murder until it flies away or she is rescued by someone. She is constantly asking to wear her pretty dress, or princess dress, or ballerina outfit. Seriously, she is already obsessed with shoes, not sneakers, GIRLIE SHOES. She wants her hair done, her nails painted, and her chapstick (aka lipstick) readily available. She is sugar and spice and everything nice - polar opposite of mommy.

So, why then, does my girl fart like a man and laugh, burp loudly and announce it to the whole room, and stick her finger in her nose in public? Not. Very. Ladylike. (she does at least say excuse me :-/). Today she comes to me and says "what's this on my shirt?" I didn't see anything. She kept pushing, and finally I told her just to point out whatever it was I was supposed to see. She then says in a very sweet voice, "It's greeeeeeennnn." Are you kidding me? It was a freaking booger. I tell her to go get a tissue, but no she says she wants me to get it. Um, I don't think so. Again, I tell her to get a tissue, but instead, she scratches the thing off of her shirt. WTH. So, I tell her for the third time to get a tissue, and she tries to wipe it on the box of brownies I was holding. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS CHILD? I moved the box, raised my voice, and said TISSUE, NOW! Finally, she walks away, presumably to get a tissue, but who knows. I may find that thing stuck on my wall somewhere later today.

A Great Man

My grandfather passed away recently and it has been very tough on the entire family. He was a wonderful papa, and I miss him everyday. I am by no means a poet, but sometimes writing helps me get out what I am feeling - cheesy as it may be. I am thinking about doing some artwork for it and binding it as a children's book for my kids. I would love for them to remember him.

Furman Edward Sims June 17, 1929-July 21, 2010

Grandpas are funny. They like to play games

Grandpa’s are loving, the make up nicknames

Grandpa’s are silly, they dance and they sing

Grandpa’s are strong and protect you from “things”

My grandpa was special, he lives in my heart

As long as I love him, we’re never apart

I remember the times that we would share

Laughing and joking without a care

He’d say “whatcha wanna do” and I would say dance

Then we would hop all around like there were ants in our pants

Late nights he’d find me tucked into bed

He’d whisper to ask me if I had been fed

He would know the answer but it mattered not

He had some great goodies in bags or in pots

And at night we’d eat, no matter how late

Ice cream, burgers, sleeping could wait

There were times when he’d give me 5 dollars to spend

And before I knew it 5 dollars was 10

And as the day would go on it would multiply more

And I’d spend lots of time back and forth to the store.

My grandpa will always live on in my mind

Forever and always in my heart you will find

My sweet recollections of times that we shared

And all the reminders of how much he cared

I love you Papa!

Seriously?

Could this week really have been any busier. I have been so tired at the end of every night! Lets start with Wednesday. Football had a scrimmage, so we decided to cheer since it was a home game. I was on my feet the entire time. Then I had to pick the kids up from my parents house. By the time I got home, we were all done. Chris and I fell asleep on the couch, and didn't go upstairs until close to two o'clock. I had the presence of mind to check his diaper and realize it was pretty heavy. SO, half asleep and delirious I took the diaper off, and replaced it with a pull up, since it was easier to put on. We then went back to sleep. When Donnie got home, he woke me up to inform me that Chris had peed all over me. I apparently had slept right through it. I didn't understand how he had peed on me since I had changed him before we fell back to sleep. Well, Donnie informed me that although I had put the pull up on him, I had failed to point his important parts the right way. As a matter of fact, not only had I not pointed it the right way, it was poking out of the top of the pull up. There is no telling how many times I got peed on.

Alex's first day of school!

So, today my oldest is officially a kindergartner. (Unofficially he has been since the end of May of course.) Although he has been going to school since he three, it was still strange to leave him in that room. It is way to official now. He is a big boy, far from a baby. I am excited to see what he learns this year. He is so curious by nature, I know that he will just soak up whatever is thrown at him.

On a totally unrelated note, as I sit here and type, Krista is begging for little man's nuggets (which he has been nursing for about two hours). It is like a game, she tries to feed him, he says no, so she tries to eat it, and all of a sudden he wants it. Then, baby girl proceeds to say, "Please can I have it? Please, please, please! Please! Please! Of course the whole time this is going on, they are lounging on me making it very hard to think, let alone type. So, since there is entirely too much effort in this post, I will end for now. Random, I know.

Happy Birthday Chris

Today is my baby's second birthday. The time has passed way too quickly! He has been a blessing. He entered this world weighing 6 pounds 13 ounces. He was 19 and 3/4 inches and my biggest baby. He came here with a head full of black hair. It has been a crazy ride since then. Adding one more to a family changes the entire dynamic. He has such personality, and everyone falls in love with him. I blame his brother and sister because their hyperactivity and spasticness has definitely influenced him. He is a flirt, and loves to dance and sing. He is not shy and laughs loud and plays hard. He is all boy, and loves his mama above all others (except maybe pop pop). If you had asked me three years ago if I wanted another child I would have said no way, but now my life would be utterly incomplete without him!