My little Rico-Bean had a pretty bad nosebleed at school yesterday….like, I had to go get him. 😦 So, the Bible verse that my Mama prayed over me for years is now the verse that I am praying over my son (Ezekiel 16:6). That kinda breaks my heart a little bit; I hope he grows out of this before I did. I never really grew out of it; rather, I got healed of them in my 20’s.

David still gets them, and like me, he had them while growing up. Nosebleeds run rampant on my bio-dad’s side of the family, and with David getting them? Yikes–bring on the prayers and the Vitamin K.

So, before I got the call from the school to come and get my child, I was doing my annual plant purchasing. I bought herbs and annuals, and was fortunate enough to get a few things on sale. I’ve done well with discounted plants! My little $0.50 Japanese fern from Lowe’s, from 8 years ago, is thriving!!! I was supposed to see my MD yesterday, but those plans were thwarted by the call from the school.

I picked Rico up, and everyone said they were so pleased by how calm he stayed. His nose bled for over 30 minutes, which is a lot; he never cried or acted scared, so when he asked me to take him to the store, I caved, and he got some Hot Wheels. 🙂 We went home, & he asked me if he could help plant.

My parents had a nice garden when I was a kid, and even though there were some things I hated (picking beans!!!!!), I loved the idea of getting grounded in planting something new. I had a raised garden for a while, but it became too difficult to maintain between parenthood, my job, and the fatigue that is such an issue. My front yard, however, is doable, and I keep it pretty low-maintenance.

I think Rico-bean just wanted to play in the dirt, but honestly? Since he already had blood on his shirt, what harm could dirt do? So, together, we planted my herbs and flowers. It was fun to work with him, & he was so good!!! He listened, he followed instructions, and he helped to make the work go much faster. He’s getting so big, & I can really see how much he’s matured in this first year of school.

He’s definitely still my little boy, though! I usually go to bed before David, as does Jericho; last night, he said, “Mommy, can we go to sleep like we used to do? I wanna hop in your bed.” So, in he went! We snuggled under the blankets, read a story, and he said our prayers: “God, we just want You to be in control, so please show us Your ways.” I think that’s a pretty great prayer.

A friend of mine has a kid that’s hit the “terrible twos,” and I have to be honest–Jericho was pretty good thru the two’s and three’s, but four?!?!? FOUR WAS NOT FUN. This kindergarten year has been a blast, though, and we are seeing his personality really develop!

I know that I usually blog because I want to sort through an issue or make a point, but today? I just want to document a memory. I want to remember yesterday, not because of the nosebleed, but because of the sweetness of working together with my ever-growing young man, and the cuddles with my forever-little boy. I don’t want to forget the dirty fingers and flushed cheeks, or the innocent prayers and the bubble baths. There is so much beauty in an average day with your kiddo…I need to write it down, because when they’re growing up, nothing is “average.” Everything they do is full of wonder; we’re just too busy to stop and to breathe it in.

I’m breathing it in.

This kid is amazing…as tired as I am, as busy as we get, I have to stop & breathe it in, and make these memories, because otherwise, what am I doing? I don’t want to be 10 years down the road and have forgotten these moments. I love that we have smartphones that make photography second-nature, and there are perks to having the ability to document everything.

Some day, I’ll read over these blogs and be thankful that they’re not all angsty emo-diatribes of whatever I’m sorting out.

I’ll be grateful for the time I took to document the wonder and joy of a dirty, snuggly, adorable little boy and his Hot Wheels, and of an afternoon spent on plants and prayers.