May I Never Forget...

...my O, just the way he is right now.

He is truly the sweetest child I have ever known. He loves his Brother with a selfless concern for his well-being. Owen is always the first to hear Noah crying, almost as if his ear is always tuned in to his "No-Nos'" needs. He is quick to offer Noah a toy if he is growing restless; even quicker to retrieve Noah's paci if it falls. He is always good to go chat with Noah to pacify him until Mommy can come remedy the situation. Owen has never told Jeremy or me that we are loved, but several times O's sweet lips have adamantly declared, "I love you, No-ah!" with a sound smacking of a kiss to follow.

O loves his Brother!

Owen tries so hard to obey. As a two-year-old, the choice to obey or not to obey and face the consequences is sometimes a struggle, but usually obedience wins. The struggle to choose is evident on his sweet face, and he is so proud when he makes Jesus and Mommy and Daddy so happy by choosing to obey.

Owen loves to pray! He has started composing his own precious prayers. I can not even imagine the joy it must bring our Father to hear O's sweet voice calling upon His Name. His prayers usually go something like this: "Thank you, God, for...(insert names of everyone in his entire extended family and anyone he may have encountered throughout his day). We often stop three or four times during a meal so that Owen can say more "pay-ers." How it thrills my heart that he has a desire for God already!

Owen loves to sing and make music. We make up silly nonsense songs all day long about whatever we might be doing in our day. He catches on quickly and joins in with fervor. He lets the joy in his huge heart spill over in the form of music. Such a happy little singer!

O is a boy who loves order and routine. He is very bothered when something is out of place in his environment. For example, if a block accidentally gets put in the Little People cubby, he is very alarmed and must immediately put it in its proper place. I left Owen's sandals on the floor of his room instead of putting them away during nap. No sooner had I shut the door of his room with O tucked cozily in bed before I hear frantic crying. "Put shoes back away, Mommy! Back away!" He keeps me on my toes...and my house straightened! The same goes for our routine. There are some things that we can never vary without causing disruption. One morning, Owie and I shared a bowl of yummy cereal in the living room, backs up against the wall to prop up tired Mommy. I guess O really enjoyed his breakfast! Now, as soon as he spies the cereal box, he is already sitting in the exact same spot waiting for his bites. I tried to move to a different bit of wall once, and was admonished with a, "No, Mommy, heee (O's word to denote a specific place or way of doing things)!" Silly O! He also must always match his plate/bowl to his eating utensils. This poses quite a challenge when the only clean bowl is orange but our only spoon is blue! Get out the soap, Mom, and start color coordinating!

Thank you, Father, for the opportunity to mother this precious Boy! My cup runneth over.