He builds

these tracks. Using every bit of track that he can find.

Long, winding. Long stretches with tunnels.  Things that don't connect. Leading nowhere. And everywhere.

Singing happy little nothing tunes as he works. 

Happy just to build a place for his beloved trains. Unaffected by broken bits. Just fixing them as he goes. Changing the layout several times a day.

Just happy. Happy to live in the world of trains. In his sweet imagination. His very own rail yard in our dining room.

Tonight....

he colors an "ot-agon" from his class earlier today. His "homework".

Tonight he is a little sick. A little flushed. Talking with that sweet little stuffed up nose.

Tonight he wanted to take his flashlight outside and shine it in the sky to make a moon. When it didn't work, he made all sorts of fun shadows on the porch instead.

Tonight he wanted to run through the grass in his bare feet and find lightning bugs. When I told him they were sleeping, he wanted to make loud noises to wake them up.

Tonight he practiced writing his name. D H L D H 7.

Tonight he made me smile till my cheeks hurt and melted my heart.

He can do anything

As we brushed our teeth, Jaxon decided this year, "Santa can bring you a chicken." Silence. He ponders a moment.

"If he can bring other people dogs and cats and guides pigs, then he can bring you a chicken." Too sweet.

Would I remember....

Without this photo....

Those little chubby fingers fumbling with the smallish buttons of my brown sweater. You learning to become big. So much faster than I remember with your bigger brothers. Because of your brothers. In a hurry to catch up.

You sat in my lap. "To keep you warm," you tell me as you work. "Come on, come on," you urge as you patiently push the buttons through the small holes. Eyes sparkling with concentration. A bit of tongue on your lip. Tell tale signs of hard work in our home. 

But you never break with frustration. Just patience and the need to conquer this small achievement. I marvel and watch you learn. Loving these quiet, important moments. 

These are the moments that tug at my heart. When I gasp at the thought, the miracle of three. That these moments might never have happened. But they have. Are. And will. Surreal. And so precious. I cling to these tiny minutes that  might pass unnoticed elsewhere. But not here. In my heart. 

Math

My big boy is in middle school this year. It's so very difficult to imagine that he has grown this big in a blink of an eye.

(At his locker during orientation.... Learning to use a combination lock.)

He is now in his second week of school. Last week he found himself in general music instead of band. A trip to the office and he is now in the correct class.

At the end of that first week he was complaining about his math class. How doing addition and subtraction were boring. On Tuesday he brought home his math homework.... Multiplication.

2 x 9.... 1x7.... For a boy who got 99% on his report card in math last year, this looks a little boring. So I called the guidance department just to check.... And found he was in the wrong math class.

Trip #2 to the guidance department, and he is now in the advanced math. Yesterday he came home happy to say that he is now deep in equations with parenthesis and exponents. 

So glad he loves middle school and that he is thriving. New friends. New challenges. He was so very ready for this next step.

First game of the year.....

Multiple shots on goal.... And in the second period, Jaxon scored!!!!! So very excited for him. Those precious gems are few and far between. 

What a proud mama I am.

Look at me, Mama

He hasn't quite given it up yet. But we're working on it. And sick days, like today, make it a little harder.

He's having a hard time transitioning to being home alone. He misses those big brothers something fierce. Our days are so much more quiet. Calm. Unlike the summer chaos. Fighting & laughing. Excitement and adventures. 

Unfortunately that missing had turned into a bit of destructive behavior.... Breaking more Legos. Coloring all over Luke's backpack. But, understanding yourself and your world is a little much when you're three.

But, he still holds tight to his silly, sweet sense of humor.... As seen here piling his "nyops" on each other with a smile.