Happy Birthday Riley!!

My man Riley turns 4 today. It's kind of funny. 4 years ago, we were able to pick a day on which we wanted Riley to be born as he was a planned C-section. Because Marci was of "advanced" maternal age, we had to keep a close relationship with our OB/GYN. Because of some health issues, it was decided to have Riley via C rather than via V.

I remember that summer was pretty dang hot. Like last week, only for longer periods of time. My father-in-law, Ted, was in town with us for several weeks as Marci was on bed rest and not allowed to do anything but grow a baby. It was great having Ted here. Marci and Haley got some much needed grandparent time and I was able to work without worrying about Marci staying off her feet.

Anyway, Rye was plucked from the womb in the am sometime and I remember he cried quite vehemently, as if he didn't want to be plucked from the womb yet. Little did we know what we were in for...

As we got him home, Haley was super excited about her little bro. She never developed the jealous sibling thing; rather, she loved being with him and being his big sis.

Throughout the years, it became more and more clear that Riley preferred his mother to me by a long shot. We had SO MANY STRUGGLES with bedtimes and separation. Even as recently as a year ago, Riley and I (can I really blame him? He was barely 3!) were fighting nearly every night. We'd have a good day, then, when it came time for bed, all heck would break loose. It was a horrible time for me, and for the family, I think.

Not only that, as Riley grew older, we (Marci, mainly) began realizing that he had certain issues. Most of them I've documented before, but suffice it to say, Riley's seen more doctors and specialists in his 4 years than I have in my entire life.

Thankfully his situation isn't dire. We know autistic kids, kids with deformities, kids with issues that make Riley's look like a walk in the park. So, for that, I suppose we are lucky. Doesn't mean I'm looking forward to his surgery, but you know what I mean.

What's been fun most recently is Riley is he's such an eager boy. He's funny and has a definite sense of humor. He has a lot of things he just LOVES, like Tom and Jerry cartoons, macaroni and cheese, monkeys, playing UNO, and his mom. He loves being with us, which can be annoying at times (sometimes you just want to be alone!), but seeing him shuffle down the hall in the morning for his hug is one of the highlights of my day.

I don't know what turned him around. He's finally able to sleep through the night and that has made a huge difference in our lives. He's finally to go to bed without fighting us (though I think that has more to do with us figuring him out than anything else).

I love Riley how he is now. I love how he talks. It's so cute and endearing, but, ultimately, that's a selfish thing for me. I know that to go through his life with nasal emissions and mispronounced words will lead to heartache and anguish for him, so getting that "fixed" is high on our list of things to do. Throw in giving him the ability to drink water, or use scissors, or not have sinus infections anymore and it makes his surgery a (no pun intended) no-brainer.

I know he'll be a more functional little dude when this is all over. I am excited to share a root beer with him. That excites him quite a bit. He's aware of what's going on and, so far, he doesn't seem worried.

This has been a pretty rambling post. I wanted to celebrate Riley's 4th birthday and I guess I just started rambling. He's super-excited and is so cute when he holds up his 4 fingers to show how old he's going to be. A year from now, he'll be 5 and we'll be talking about how he's about to head off to kindergarten. That's pretty incredible.

And I'm turning into a big sap.

Now Mommy's turn to be a little sappy.....





Happy Birthday Little man! You are such a sweet boy and I am so proud of you. Daddy said it well so I don't have much to add. But, I do want to say you and your sister bring much happiness to my life. I admire your joy and how hard you work at everything.
I love you and can't wait to see what the next year brings!
Love,
Mommy