And So It Begins....

A conversation between Maddox and me this evening…

Maddox: Mommy, who is your favorite? Me or Cooper.

Mommy: You are both my favorite. You’re my favorite guys!

Maddox: That wasn’t a choice. And besides, you know Cooper is the naughty one.

Me: Well, I love you both very much. If I was to ask you who is your favorite, Mommy or
Daddy, wouldn’t it be hard.

Maddox: Well, it’s Daddy.

Mommy: WHAT??

Maddox: Well Mommy, you know how much I love that he got me that gun (a foam dart gun at Walgreens a year or more ago).

Mommy: Wow. I just got you ice cream tonight.

Maddox: Oh yeah, that’s right. OK, you are my favorite. I was just joking. ACTUALLY, you are BOTH my favorite.

Mommy: See! That’s how I feel about you and Cooper. I love you both so much I could never say who my favorite is!!!

Maddox: Ooooohhhh, OK.

I didn’t realize it would happen so soon! I didn’t know that I would be faced with these questions at the tender age of 4.5! I’m not exactly sure where this came from. There was not any sibling rivalry going on. Both guys were happy and getting what they wanted. It really threw me off!!! I remember having these thoughts when I was a kid. Maybe it was my middle child status. Maybe it was just my personality. Who knows! I could change from day to day on KNOWING who the favorite was of my parents’!!! It was only as I grew up that I really KNEW that I was the favorite for sure! Hahahaha! Just kidding, Ben and Emily :) . Now, as a parent I understand. You love your kids the same, but differently! Of course, right now in my life, I have a witty 4 year old and an on-the-verge-of-a-tantrum almost 2 year old. But I love them just the same! Maddox is quick to tell a joke (or his version of one) or to go into a long drawn out story from his extremely active imagination. Cooper is my man of few words (which is often a treat to have a little silence) but he is so quick to flash a big ol’ grin, give a tight squeeze or a big smoochie kiss. They both have their strengths and I love them for who they are! They are so much fun, they are exhausting, they keep me thinking, they keep me on my toes. I am just head over heels in love with them both. Thanks Jim for making me the mommy of these two amazing little men!

The Streaker

We went to the pool late this morning since i thought it might rain this afternoon after nap time. Maddox did AWESOME swimming without his swim vest and is a jumping maniac off the side! He does these crazy running starts and then a wild pose mid-air before splash down. He's 1000 times braver today than he was 2 weeks ago. I look forward to see what progress he makes between now and the end of the summer. Cooper loves the water, too. He's "jumping" off the side as well but I'm trying very hard to make sure his head doesn't go under. He loves splashing around and paddles and kicks best he can with the swim vest AND swimmies on his arms! We had been there about an hour when Cooper started to get grouchy. It was lunchtime and awfully close to nap time...these two events are not to be messed with so I knew it was time to start packing up. Maddox did well with his "one last jump" warning and came out of the pool happy and with a good attitude (makes life so much easier that way). We rode him in wet swimsuits since we were just at the neighborhood pool. Maddox would prefer I bring "dry clothes" to change into, but he got over the fact that he would ride home in his bathing suit and was happy to sit in the back seat with his towel. We pulled into the driveway and I didn't see any flags up on the mailboxes on our street so I decided to run and check the mail. I got out of the van and opened the sliding doors with the remote as I was walking by to the mailbox. I was back the van a few seconds later to get Cooper out and saw out of the corner of my eye Maddox's bare bottom run into the garage! I called him back out of the garage and asked him where his swimsuit was. He said in the backseat with his red one from yesterday!!!!! Somehow, in the two minute ride from the pool to our house, he was able to get out of his bathing suit!! I must say I was impressed. He brought both of his suits in and suggested he just have lunch in the buff, but I vetoed that idea and he is now dressed in proper dining attire. What a goose!

The Adventure of Gassy Buddy

I hope this is not offensive to you...but, in my family, we get a chuckle out of "bathroom talk". I don't know why it's so funny, but my sister and I can really get hysterical when it comes to bodily functions. So, you can imagine I enjoyed Maddox's latest observation.

Maddox: I smell something stinky. Who did that toot?
Me: Not me. Maybe Buddy?
Maddox: Oh yeah, you're right. Well, I guess it's another adventure for Gassy Buddy today.

Where does he come up with this stuff????

He must take after his father...

My sweet little Cooper is closing in on his two year birthday. He's such a sweet little guy with a BIG personality, but every once in a while his emotions take over and he has a hard time reigning them back in (I mean, he's an Alford/McArthur, isn't he?). The other day he was just having one of those moments where he was frustrated because he wasn't getting what he wanted with his loud, high-pitched screeches. So, what does any almost 2 year old do? He pitched a tantrum that could have won an award (if there was such a thing)! In the middle of it, Maddox walked over to me and we watched together as Cooper kicked and screamed and rolled around in the floor. Maddox very calmly stated, "ughhh, I think he takes after his fodder." Then he calmly walked away. He just made his observation and left me to deal with the remainder of the tantrum! Thankfully, Cooper recovered quickly and was back to his happy self in no time at all!

Are you tired, Mommy?

Leave it to my 4 year old to be the perceptive one in the house....after a long day of fun at the Y and the pool, Maddox says to me: "Mommy, are you tired? It looks like you could use a rest. I'll tell you what I'll do for you. I'll go to the basment and kick out my bad attitude. But don't worry, I won't kick out my good attitude. Does that sound good to you?"

What a guy! I was tired, but I really felt like I was handling myself well. Wasn't being snappy or impatient with him. Gotta love a (little) man who is in touch with his best girl's feelings! What a sweetheart.

Just Like Daddy

Maddox likes to do things "just like Daddy". After sliding down the pole of the trampoline last week he announced to me that "now that I can slide down a pole, I'm ready to be a fireman". Which was especially funny to me seeing as though there are no fire poles or two story fire stations in Gwinnett County (which are the only stations he's ever been to). Last weekend, Jim was working on the Mustang (another one of Maddox's favorite Daddy things) so he jumped right in, or under, to help out! He thought he was big stuff! Cooper and I just observed and played outside while the big boys got greasy!

Happy to be outside!

Taking it all in...

Oh well, it didn't turn out as planned....

"Hey, Mom! Look what Daddy taught me to do!"

Thanks, Jim...Maddox is thrilled to have SPIDER CLIMBING to put on his list of party tricks!