Happy Birthday to You!

To our little monkey man,
It's that time of year. I go back and have to read previous posts I've written, just to see how far you've come and what milestones you've hit. You're growing into quite the young man. So much has happened this past year (unfortunately not all of it good). You had to go into the hospital for a little while a few months ago because you were really sick with pneumonia. Mommy and daddy were so worried. Mommy stayed with you the whole time, though, only leaving your side once when she had to go to the doctor herself. Papaw snuck in some of Mema's cookies for you, which made you feel a little better. As your mother, I forbid you to get sick like that again, do you understand?
Another big thing that happened this year is you got a baby sister, Evie! You are such an AWESOME big brother to her and a big help to mommy and daddy. You like to sing to her, kiss her, give her her pacifier, and the other day I heard you telling her the sounds different animals make. You even "read" to her occasionally.
You tell mommy and daddy all the time that you're a big boy now. You insist that you can do different things, or that you shouldn't have to do things, because you're a big boy, and big boys do/don't do that stuff. You're still having a little setback with potty training, as you will still poo in your pull-up, usually overnight. During the day you'll use the potty no problem, and have even for the most part stopped completely stripping down just to use the bathroom. You'll just pull your pants down and then back up when finished (thankfully!).
Around the house you're a big help. We haven't set up specific chores for you yet, but you'll help mommy with laundry, unloading the dishwasher, feeding the dogs, bringing in the groceries and putting them away, and helping mommy clean up after she grooms. It takes quite a bit of coaxing to get you to clean your toys downstairs, but you're pretty good about cleaning your room and making your bed. One thing that mommy loves is how you'll randomly wrap your arms around mommy and kiss her cheek if you can and say sweetly, "I love you, mommy!" You don't do it as much to daddy, but you will tell him you love him on occasion.
You still love learning like I mentioned last year (yay!). You have a bag of learning tools, mainly from Mema, as well as flash cards of colors, shapes, and numbers that you love to get out and look at. You are so smart, too. Mema has a fuzzy die that you play with when we're over there and you don't have to physically count the numbers on each side. You just take one glance and declare what it is. You know all your numbers up to 20 (though you do tend to leave out fourteen for some reason), shapes, colors (and even are starting to learn what color combinations make what color), and letters. You're trying to learn how to tell time, which really has mommy flabbergasted. You ask mommy and daddy all the time what time it is. I think you're starting to catch on a little bit to reading digital time. You have a wooden analog clock that you got from Miss Ashley from church that you pull out and study/play with occasionally. We're always amazed as well how you pick up words, and even use them correctly (Ex: You told me not long ago that you evolved from a cat to a dog in a past life.)
That being said, kid, you say some of the craziest things! I've taken to sharing our conversations on Facebook for everyone to see. The things you come up with in your little mind are so off the wall, I don't know how you come up with them (like the past life conversation).
I did an interview with you a few days ago and this is what I came up with:

-What’s your favorite color? Yellow and just red and just orange. Wait. Blue, green, and pink, and orange. Because Team Umizoomi, because Bot is green, and Millie’s dress is pink, and Geo is blue, and Umi car is orange. So I only like yellow, green, and orange.

-What’s your favorite toy? Green lawnmower

-What’s your favorite fruit? Oranges

-What’s your favorite TV show? Team Umizoomi and Paw Patrol

-What’s your favorite thing for lunch? Jelly sandwiches

-What’s your favorite outfit? Dinosaur shirt

-What’s your favorite snack? Popcorn

-What’s your favorite animal? Lizards and a pig

-What’s your favorite song? ABC

-What’s your favorite book? Thomas book

-Who’s your best friend? Big Jacob

-What’s your favorite cereal? Cheerios

-What do you like to do outside? Water table

-What’s your favorite drink? Juice

-What’s your favorite holiday? The one with candy and Batman (Halloween)

-Who sleeps with you at night? Ruff and blanket

-What do you like to eat for breakfast? I LOVE pancakes!

-What do you want to be when you grow up? A big boy.

I think that's about it for this year, monkey. Next year we'll have to get you signed up to go to kindergarten! Mommy doesn't know what she's going to do then. You're excited at the prospect of starting school, and even tell me all the time that you want to go to school. Hopefully you'll still feel this way when you actually do start.
Mommy and daddy love you so much, buddy. Happy birthday!

Every Move You Make...I'll Be Watching You

All right! I have a small rant to release here. I may upset some people, I don't know.
I just saw an article (a slightly sarcastic one) that reported allegedly the arresting police officers of the Charleston, SC shooter stopped at a Burger King and bought the shooter some food. That's not what upsets me (well, it does in part, but I'll get to that in a moment). What upsets me is how outraged people are about it. The police in this country just can't win! If they don't listen to the suspect, they get slammed for not listening and possibly preventing a tragedy later. When they do listen, they get ripped to shreds because they helped a horrible person. What the heck, people!
Okay, so I realize part of the outrage has a racial basis. The suspects that weren't acknowledged were black and the one that was is white. Also, the crimes were quite a bit different in severity. And that may be the main background for this outcry of "injustice." If it is, then, yes, I wholeheartedly agree that it's not fair.
We need to lay off the police and direct our disdain to where it needs to be, which is towards the actual criminals. The police are doing their jobs. Yes, as with just about every aspect of life, you have the bad with the good. There are rotten apples in with the shiny, crisp ones. But we can't blame the good ones and judge them on what the bad ones are doing. People complain about police profiling people. What do you think happens to them? The police are used as boogeymen to keep children in line. They're used as threats.
They put their lives on the line EVERY...SINGLE...DAY. They leave their families, their wives, their children every morning, sometimes not even knowing if they'll be returning that evening. We've seen the news. We've seen the videos of traffic stops gone bad. The police take risks for others that I'm pretty sure most of us wouldn't even DARE to attempt. They're doing their jobs, and if you don't cooperate and hassle them, then you make those situations much harder than it has to be, both for you and for them. Cut them some slack. They make mistakes. They're only human.

Keep Fighting the Good Fight

Is it worth it?

That was the sentiment of the sermon this morning. With everything that we've gone through and are still going through, I've been thinking (and praying) a lot. The thinking part is not always good, as I tend to OVER think, or just scenarios run rampant through my mind that don't always have the greatest outcome.
When Jody said those four little words in front of all of us this morning, I immediately perked up. Quite a few times lately a voice in my head uttered those exact words. "Is it worth it? Is it worth all this pain and frustration to still hang on to your faith? Just give it up." Yeah, as hard as it is for me to admit it, I've been going to some dark places in my mind lately. But then something happens--I hear a song, I see something online--and it reinforces my resolve to keep believing. So when I heard where the sermon was going this morning, I knew it was another encouraging message from above.
Jody said something that really stuck with me, that I had to write it down. "When you go through the hard times, you get to experience God's grace in a way you never would." No, I don't expect to go breezing through life without a care in the world. That's just not how things work. If you don't experience the bad stuff, then you won't be able to appreciate the good stuff. It's kind of like Christmas. I LOVE Christmas! The lights, the food, the family, the songs (yeah, I'm one of those people that tunes into a radio station when it switches to the seasonal music!). I would love for Christmastime to be all year round. But then it wouldn't be as magical for me, I wouldn't think. I don't know if that's the best example, but it's what I could come up with.
So, to answer the question "Is it worth it?" Yes, I believe it is. I don't know how long this trial will last, but there WILL be an end and we WILL finally get peaceful (hopefully worry-free) rest.

Update: I realized after finishing this and posting it that I had one more thing to say. With us going through all of this, we have had such an outpouring of support from friends and family. We can't thank people enough for all the help, love, and prayers we have received. So, to answer that little voice in my head of questionable origins, "Is it worth it to hang on to my faith?" Yeah. I think so. If it wasn't worth it then I wouldn't feel such an urgency to keep it, both from within myself, as well as from loved ones that surround me.

Another playlist for you:

"Stronger" ~Mandisa (I've put this one before, but it keeps coming up...hmm, a message?)
"Blessed Be Your Name" ~Tree63
"Good Fight" ~Unspoken
"When You Come Back to Me Again" ~Garth Brooks
"Drops in the Ocean" ~Hawk Nelson
"Let the Waters Rise" ~Mikeschair