Braggin' on my Boy

Yesterday my baby boy turned 11! Can you believe it? I'm not old enough to have an 11 year old! Really...I'm not! I wanted to take today to throw "humble" out the window and brag on my boy!

I can't believe how the time has flown. Bookworm is my firstborn...do all you moms remember how OVERWHELMING first time motherhood is? While we were in the hospital, he began exremely rapid breathing...so fast that the doctors thought he may have an infection and did routine treatment. I was NOT pleased with my hospital experience. I felt the hospital staff was unprofessional, and at times down right rude! But that's a post for another day.

After 2 spinal taps, and 3 days of antibiotics being administered via IV, they finally decided to let us go home. They put IV lines in my baby boy's head and leg...then wrapped him all up to make sure the IV's stayed in. We were to continue the doses for 6 more days at home. It was very traumatic!

When I came to the nursery to get him in his little car seat...this is the sight I saw. Except they also had his head all wrapped up in a bandage. After a nerve-wracking 3 days of worrying about my baby boy, the sight of an IV line in his head, and his leg, and him all wrapped up like a mummy brought me to tears. The idiot nurse (who was not a mother) had the nerve to say to me..."why are you crying?" in a very condescending voice. I hated her.

Here he is in his car seat all ready for his first car ride. Which he hated. And every car ride after that for the 1st year. He would scream his full head off the ENTIRE TIME! But we were so in love with this little guy. Exhausted, but in love. It turned out that he had NOTHING wrong. At all. All that trauma for nothing!

I snapped some shots of a few of my favorite scrapbook pictures to give you a brief glimpse of his life.

Here he's about 9 months old, and he's playing with Grandpa's new baby goat, Bunny (she was born Easter weekend)

Bookworm at age 5

When he was 9, Bookworm got a camera (kid's version...nothing fancy) for Christmas. He happens to be a very talented artist, and he decided he wanted to make a "how to draw" book. He took pictures in the various stages of completion of pictures he was drawing. Here is his "How to draw a Tiger" sequence.

Yep, 9 years old. I'm so proud of how hard he works to develop his talents. He's also works really hard on his violin playing ability...I posted a video here.

Last halloween...one of my favorite costumes of his!

Last week Bookworm was awarded his Arrow of Light in Cub Scouts. I'm sorry the pictures didn't turn out great...the camera was on the wrong setting, so they are kinda blurry. But they're all I've got of that night, so they'll have to do!

This cool light display is used in the Arrow of Light Ceremony, each light ray at the top stands for a different cub scout virtue, and they turn the rays on one by one as they describe what each one stands for. It's really cool.

Bookworms Cub Masters hand made this cool Arrow and presented it to him along with his Arrow of Light Badge. I thought is was such a thoughtful gesture, and he will have it to remember this experience for the rest of his life.

Yesterday was a fun family day. We opened presents, then I made Bookworm's requested breakfast: Stuffed French toast with Grandma's homemade strawberry syrup. Bookworm had to cancel his bowling plans with a friend due to the fact that although he feels okay, he's still coughing up a storm from being sick, and we couldn't be coughing all over everyone!

But last night my parents and brothers and new SIL came over for a BBQ, and combined celebration. My mom's b-day was last week, so we were celebrating her as well!

I saw this idea for hamburger cupcakes at Bakerella and had to try it for our Birthday BBQ! I love how they turned out, but my french fries were a bomb, so they ended up in the garbage!

They were a hit, and we had a wonderful time with our family!


Here's my way too old little boy! I can't believe he's 11. I love you buddy!

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